Year 2: The Beater and Badger
by RedCloakedMaiden
Summary: The Order of Merlin, Year 2. Rose Weasley returns for her second year at Hogwarts and she is determined to prove how great Hufflepuff House really is. But what does one do when Hufflepuff values are the ones that others are willing to sacrifice first?
1. Everything's Coming Up Roses

**The Beater and Badger**

Chapter 1: Everything's Coming Up Roses

* * *

Rose flew higher into the cerulean sky, her red curls tangling themselves in the wind. She didn't bother to pull them into a knot, but merely swatted a wayward strand out of her face as she searched for it.

"GOAL!" James shouted as Louis's shot went through Albus's wide arms and into the bubblegum pink hula hoop. Rose sighed and shook her head as Albus nearly flipped over the side of his broom. Albus just wasn't any good at Quidditch. But Teddy was too nice a person to not have picked him for his team. James on the other hand, he was much smarter and picked _Lily_ before he dared choose his younger brother! Tiny little thing Lily was, she still made an excellent seeker. _Which is what you should be doing!_ Rose reminded herself sternly. Leaning forward on the handle, the broom shot forward and she circled the field for a glint of gold.

There it was! Rose dropped onto her stomach, forcing the handle to turn downwards and sprint for the glittering gold. Lily saw what Rose was after and flew after her quickly, the other players turned and stopped to watch them. Lily was smaller and quicker, but Rose had a huge head-start and she knew what she was doing on a broom, even if she wasn't built to be a seeker. Rose reached out a hand as Lily drew up close on her right and her fingers closed over the golden ball.

_Not to mention my arms are longer,_ Rose thought smugly as she triumphantly lifted the Snitch into the air, amid cheers from her teammates Albus and Fred.

"It is too bad Dommie couldn't be here, Rose," Freddy remarked as ran up to meet her on the ground. "Or else you could have practiced Beater." Rose grinned at the thought of being Beater. It was her favorite position; she was built for tackling bludgers with her sturdy build that kept her grounded, long arms to smack her bat into the jet-black balls and a confidence in flying unhanded.

"Dominique will be back soon," Albus promised as he wobbled back down to earth. "The Tri-Team Tournament only lasts a week." The Ravenclaws had won the Quidditch Cup last school year and so, Dominique had gone with her team to compete with Beauxbatons and Durmstrang in a Quidditch tournament that had been set up fifteen years or so to 'improve the relationships between schools and their students,' according to her Mum. "But it's too bad Teddy and Vic aren't around anymore. She sure started real life fast!" Victoire had started her internship with St. Mungos the week after her graduation and Teddy had returned to studying Transfiguration in hopes of getting a mastery.

Rose desperately wanted to compete in The Tri-Team Tournament like her cousin Dominique next summer, but for her to play for Hogwarts, she'd have to play on the Hufflepuff team and they'd have to beat Ravenclaw, Slytherin and Gryffindor. It was a tall order—and one Hufflepuff hadn't come even close to succeeding in for twenty-five years.

Lily ran ahead of the Weasley-Potter teams and called out as she came to a stop by the hen house. "Whose's car _is_ that?" The little redhead asked, pointing off in the distance. James, Fred and Louis ran up to her and watched this mysterious car as the rest of them caught up. Rose didn't recognize it either. It was small and compact, but it was also the ugliest color of pukey-beige Rose had ever seen. It could have belonged to any muggle, but it didn't. If it belonged to any muggle, then it wouldn't be driving up the dirt lane to the Burrow.

Albus nudged her. "Do you think Uncle Percy got a new car?" he suggested. Rose shook her head and Fred answered.

"He'd still be at work right now, maybe that's Aunt Audrey driving Molly and Lucy here?"

"Not unless Aunt Audrey is donning a hat, grew a mustache and dyed her hair Weasley red," Louis countered.

The car continued up the lane until it came to a stop in front of the house, sending several chickens squawking as they took cover. The door opened, and the man who was not Uncle Percy or Aunt Audrey stepped out. He was a remarkable plumpy man, wearing a pine-wood colored tie and a darker suit and sported a stiff bright red mustache that completely hid his upper lip. The other car door opened now too and a woman stepped out, her hair was permed horribly reminding Rose of a little french poodle. The woman had darkly tanned skin yet her hair was a blonde that clashed horribly. Even from a distance, Rose could see that her eyes were such a dark color that they had no pupil.

Rose wanted to stay and watch these strange, so obviously muggle couple, but Roxanne pulled her along. "C'mon," the cocoa-skinned girl whispered. "Let's get inside, we can hear what they want." Rose eagerly followed her cousins in the back door as they scurried through the living room. They were barely over the kitchen threshold when a doorbell sounded, the bustle of Grandmum Weasley as she set down her stirring spoon and made her way to the door, the door opened and then—

"Sweet Merlin!" Grandmum startled at the sight of the muggle man, his wife behind him. "Orville Prewett?" The man edged uneasily from foot to foot.

"Hello Molly," he replied after a moment's pause to exchange a glance with his wife. "We have something important we need to discuss with you." His eyes widened at the number of children attempting to squeeze themselves into the kitchen at this point. "**Alone**." Molly Weasley whipped around and caught them guilty of attempting to eavesdrop.

"Everybody out," she stated firmly as the groans and complaints started up.

"But why not?"

"Just because—"

"Who _**are**_ those people?"

"But—"

"OUT!" Grandmum Weasley shouted, her wand out and pointed at the door as it slammed shut in their faces once the last finger had been shoved out it's way.

They all stared dumbfounded at each other for a moment. What could be so important that a muggle would want to talk to Grandmum alone?

"She did magic in front of him!" Hugo gasped suddenly, his brown eyes wide. "Grandmum could go to Azkaban for that!" Albus shook his head no, his eyes bright Slytherin green.

"If that muggle came here for Grandmum, then he must already know about magic." He decided.

Rose revolved on the spot and wriggled her left eyebrow at three of her cousins.

"All right you three," she started firmer than Grandmum Weasley when she was enforcing her 'no cookies before dinner' rule. "I know that none of you would go anywhere without some tricks up your sleeves. What have you got?" The three boys exchanged glances before unloading their supply. It was the jackpot of tricks and treats outside of the joke shop, but all they were interested in was the waxy looking ear. James snatched it up and fed the gummy string under the door as all ten of them crowded around the ear he held.

Noise filtered through it loud and audibly, as if they were in the room with them.

"I really didn't know what else to do, so when we got_** it**_, I tracked down your address and came straight here."

"I really don't see what the problem is, Orville." Grandmum said anxiously. "You're not the first to have this happen." The woman laughed, a painfully high-pitched sound.

"She wants to _be_ one though, and she wants to know about _**it**_…" the man trailed off purposefully.

"There's no shame in being one, Orville!" Grandmum snapped, Rose could hear what a huff she was in, even over the Extendible Ear. "And to think you actually grew up with us—"

"You see, Molly?" it was the thin-voiced woman now. "Orville knows what it's like to be at an ill-advantage, thrust into muggle—"

"_Protego_!" Grandmum Weasley suddenly said as the Ear shot backwards, knocking them all of their feet and hitting various pieces of furniture and floor with loud bangs and groans.

"Dam—" Louis started, before Roxanne turned her wand on him.

"_Langlock_," she said calmly as Louis's tongue glued itself to the roof of his mouth. "Be grateful that Grandmum didn't hear you or else you'd be gagging on soap bubbles," Roxanne advised. Footsteps could be heard now, someone was coming close to the door. James, Fred, Louis and Rose all scrambled for Grandpa's chair as both Albus and Roxanne calmly settled for the floor as the doorknob twisted and Grandmum stood there, blocking most of the dumpy man and clashing woman.

"I have a surprise for you," Grandmum began. "A distant cousin of mine will be staying here for the rest of the summer." Rose looked bewilderedly at the redheaded man. Sure his _**hair**_ was the right color, but the rest of him fit better at some muggle government meeting than at the Burrow which was filled with the unexpected.

"Hdwbllmrrhy!" Louis tried to bleat as James and Fred snickered. The man's expression turned pale as Grandmum Weasley waved her wand at him. Louis gasped for breath as his tongue was unwretched.

"Now, I want all of you out of the house while I get our guest settled in. Out! All of you, now!" Grandmum ordered them until they reluctantly went back out the door.

From the distance, they could see Grandmum holding the door open as the red-mustached man lugged a trunk inside. Even without looking, they all knew her wand was in her apron pocket.

"He's _**scared**_ of magic," Roxanne listed. "He knows Grandmum, she called him a distant cousin, he knows about magic, he's staying here for the rest of summer, probably with that woman, but they only brought one trunk." She paused, and looked back up at her cousins. "It doesn't fit." The caramel skinned girl said.

Albus shook his head. "That's because we're missing parts of the puzzle that Grandmum's not telling us."

"Why are you still obsessing over this?" Roxanne's older brother, Fred, broke in. Unlike his sister, he was pale and covered in freckles, but his red hair broke out into an afro. "We're going to have to spend a whole summer with Muggle Man and Miss Poodle-Hair, don't you realize how boring it will be here?" Freddie yawned, although Rose wasn't sure if it was faked. Glancing around, she realized Fred was right. Lily was making long daisy chains and Hugo was diligently reading a book next to her; James and Louis had gone back to the Quidditch paddock and now Fred was chasing after them.

Grandmum Weasley came out then, fat brown chickens scrambling out of her way. Her expression was still rueful, although it had brightened considerably, from apocalyptic to ice age.

"Well," she began loudly, then quieted to normal. "isn't anyone hungry?"

A bell and starting gate could not have set her grandchildren off faster as they raced to the dining table for lunch. Rose and Louis were neck-to-neck when they all came to a crashing halt at the end of the table.

Across from them was a girl, with the same red hair as the man and Mrs. Poodle's black eyes. Rose realized that her too-dark eyes were oddly shaped similarly to a triangle. Orville Prewett and his wife were nowhere to be seen.

"Children," Grandmum's voice came out from behind them as James stumbled to a stop, bumping Rose's shoulder. "This is my third cousin, Mafalda Prewett and she'll be staying here for the summer."

The rushing sound from the pukey-beige car sounded as the car was started and driven away outside, quickly leaving Mafalda Prewett behind at the Burrow.

Lunch was the quietest Weasley meal Rose had ever attended.

"So, Mafalda," Grandmum said brightly as they sat down at the table, all of the cousins sneaking stares at her. "I think you'll have fun with all your new cousins, as most of them are your age and we usually have at least four Weasleys and Potters here most days."

Mafalda's triangle eyes flickered to her cousins, as if silently measuring herself against them. "How many cousins do I have?" Rose flared slightly at that as Grandmum flinched then regained herself.

"You have thirteen cousins Mafalda." Grandmum stood up and began walking around the table as she pointed out each chair where one of her grandchildren ordinarily sat. "Teddy—my surrogate grand-son;" she added proudly, "and Victoire but she started her internship at St. Mungo's so you won't see her here too often; Dominique sits here, but she won't be back till August; Lucy and Molly are the twins, you'll see them here tomorrow; these three are James, Fred and Louis, no, they're not triplets no matter how much they act it and don't accept anything especially a peace offering from them or else it will probably explode—Roxanne; Albus and Rose; Hugo, he's your age and will be starting at Hogwarts with you, so maybe you'll end up in the same house; and Lily." Grandmum rushed to finish as she settled back into her seat. In the time it took her to introduce them all, Rose had finished half her lunch. "Teddy and Victoire have graduated Hogwarts already and Lily is still too young, but the rest of them are all in Hogwarts and all in different houses, so no matter where you end up, you'll have someone to look out for you." Grandmum assured Mafalda.

_Mafalda was going to Hogwarts? _Rose stopped chewing and tried to digest this fact. She knew that Grandmum's maiden name had been Prewett so Mafalda had to be related to her, but why was she here?

Nobody except Grandmum spoke again during lunch, as Grandmum tried to get them talking as she acted interested in hearing about Mafalda's life but Mafalda didn't seem very interested in it. Finally, when Grandmum had given up talking to finish eating, she allowed them free from the table.

"Mafalda, perhaps you'd like to go unpack and settle in now," Grandmum suggested. "You're on the third floor in Ginny's old room—Rose, Roxanne, why don't you go help her and get to know each other," Grandmum trapped them with a suggestion that they be nice or else. Unwillingly, Rose and Roxanne trudged up after Mafalda to Aunt Ginny's old room. Nowadays, Grandmum kept it as a girl's guest room. Mercifully, Albus followed them up as the others fled outside.

When Mafalda reach the third floor landing and stepped into her new room and turned back to them.

"I can settle myself in," she said snootily before shutting the door.

The whole purpose of their trek defeated, Roxanne shrugged at them before she stampeded down the stairs to join the others. Albus shook his head at the door and kept going up the stairs. Rose stuck her tongue out at the door and followed after Albus to the top landing.

* * *

**I'm back! And because of the great advertisement and long talks about the most random Harry Potter subjects you give me, this chapter is dedicated to you Ast!**

**So Year 2 begins! For those of you who are unfamiliar with my stories I suggest you start with Year 1: The Hallows of Hogwarts. I'd also like to mention that in the six months or so since I finished Year 1, I reworked every inch of this series and I am very excited for the future and I hope you will all be too. **

**On a more unfortunate note, I have a full schedule this summer (driver's ed, job, class, practice, sleep and repeat) and I will try to keep a constant update but we'll see how it goes. Fortunately though, I have finished school, have one year left to go and am done with math FOREVER!**


	2. The Prewett Problem

**The Beater and Badger**

Chapter 2: The Prewett Problem

* * *

On an old door with a brass plaque reading RONALD'S ROOM was a muggle combination lock that only she and Albus knew the combination to, to keep James from breaking in. It took Al merely a minute before it clicked apart and the door swung open. She and Albus had claimed the orange and low-ceiling room years ago when they were about six after discovering it at the top of the stairs. Grandmum left it mostly empty and you could easily hear someone climbing the stairs, so they were forewarned about any incoming ambushes.

Rose settled herself on her Dad's old bed, his bedcover faded to a dull tangerine, as she rooted under the mattress for their hoard of snacks. She and Albus had bought a ton of candy off the snack trolley on the Hogwarts Express at the end of last year and had secretly stashed it in here. With a month still left before they'd return to Hogwarts for their second year, there were only one Chocolate Frog left in the bag still half-bulging with candy.

"Trade you a frog for three peppermints," Rose offered hopefully. Albus was addicted to peppermints since he was five and had gotten one from a muggle neighbor while Trick-or-Treating.

"Deal," Albus agreed to agreeably. "But _**I**_ get the card." Rose rolled her eyes good-naturally at him and ripped open the packing and caught the Frog by the leg as she tossed out the card and candies.

The two of them allowed themselves a few minutes of sugary pleasure as Albus studied half-heartedly his now eighth Joan of Arc card before tossing it in to the junk bin.

"Let's get down to business," Rose said promptly. "Who is Mafalda and why is she here?"

Albus pulled off his crinkling wrapper of peppermint. "She must be related to Grandmum somehow," he said.

"That's what I thought!" Rose exclaimed loudly. "But Grandmum always said that except for Great-Great Aunt Muriel," Both of them shuddered, "and herself, there were no more Wizarding Prewetts left." She paused and unnaturally timid, she asked the question that had been prodding the back of her mind.

"Do you, maybe think, that this is another secret that our parents didn't tell us about?" Rose asked, almost afraid too. After last year's exploits, both her and Albus's parents had set them down in Uncle Harry's study and had _the talk_. It wasn't the regular one about 'growing up and having kids' talk, but the fact that her uncle was apparently the 'Boy who Lived' and the 'Chosen One' who had defeated this Dark wizard named Voldemort in the Battle of Hogwarts, the same wizard whose ghost had been haunting the Room of Requirement until they had stumbled across him last May. Oh and her parents had been great heroes and The Boy Who Lived's friends and two-thirds of the Golden Trio, and that was why people fawned over the Weasleys, not for just fighting in the Battle of Hogwarts and having good jobs in Quidditch and WWW and the Ministry, but for being heroes! Uncle Harry had said something at the end about not saying anything to anyone else because all four of them had decided when James was born that they wouldn't tell their kids until they started asking questions.

Suddenly, there were footsteps echoing as someone came up the stairs. Strangely, they quieted as they grew nearer as if they didn't want to be heard. Rose scrambled to hide the candy stash back as Albus grabbed the combination lock and began to shove the door shut.

"Truce!" Fred called out from a story below. "Rosie, Al, we are calling a truce!"

Rose and Albus exchanged a glance. While these truces never lasted long, they often proved to be profitable to them as long as the truce was held. Rose nodded briefly and Albus unlocked the door.

Fred rounded the curving stairs to the top and handed her the agreed-upon-since-the-age-of-seven offerings of a bag of peppermints and another bag of Sugar Quills. Rose accepted them graciously and nodded as they both sat down at the top of the stairs to discuss the terms.

"What do you know about Mafalda Prewett?" Freddie asked in a low voice as Rose pulled open her bag and carefully selected a quill.

Rose shrugged, not-committing. "Why would you care about our guest now?" She asked lightly, waiting for him. "Don't you think she'll be a total bore?"

Fred scowled at her. "Boring is what I'd call living with two muggles who hate magic and look as if they had never heard of fun. Confusing is what I call it when those muggles leave a kid here and say she's going to Hogwarts with us." Rose nodded, but didn't speak.

"So, what would you think if _hypothetically_, mind you, if two children were to sneak into the attic to find out more, do you think they ought to be rewarded with a no-joke promise, good for a month?" Freddie continued, his eyes gleaming.

"Two months," Rose countered before she tilted her head and raised her left eyebrow. "How are you so sure those children would be rewarded instead of caught and punished?"

"A distraction involving Weasley Wizarding Wheezes products ensures your safety." Freddie offered smoothly. "We'll even throw in Roxanne if you want."

Rose blinked and then grinned to match Fred Colin Weasley's own wicked smile. "What's the plan?"

A loud explosion went off—crackling and booming as a shrill screech started. Rose reacted just as quickly as the screamer, bolting down the stairs as Lily and Hugo darted into the house and to safety as outside, enormous dragons made out of firecrackers blew out fiery sparks that exploded out more cracks and flames. Rose reached foot of the stairs just as she heard the bellowing begin.

"WHAT HAVE I SAID ABOUT THOSE FIREWORKS?" Grandmum shouted above the explosions. "AND AFTER YOU BLEW UP ALBUS'S CHESS SET? WHILE WE HAVE A GUEST STAYING WITH US!" The kitchen door slammed shut as the shouting grew slightly fainter and Roxanne came hurrying out of the kitchen to Rose.

"Hurry!" she urged. "It will only be a few minutes before she realizes she picked up the fake wand!" Roxanne hissed as she passed off Grandmum's wand.

Rose didn't need to be told twice as she bolted up the stairs, all the way up to the fifth floor where Albus was waiting. "Here!" she gasped, thrusting the wand out to him.

Albus took it and pointed it above their heads. "_Descendo_," he said carefully and a short little ladder pried itself off the ceiling and started to float downward as ominous moans echoed.

Rose grabbed the wand back and leapt off the landing to the forth before she sprinted back down. When she reached the second story landing, she saw Roxanne anxiously reaching for the wand as the kitchen door opened. Rose threw it down to her and Roxanne snatched it up and fled to Grandmum, offering back her wand.

"Grandmum, you must have grabbed the fake wand I was playing with!" Roxanne cried out as Rose sneaked back up the stairs again, this time quiet and slowly. Whatever you might call Roxanne Weasley: an absolute diva, tempermental hellion even as one year older than Rose and a complete contrast to her older brother, she had the Weasley talent of mimicry_ and _was a born actress, the perfect cousin to explain anything to Grandmum.

By the time Rose had climbed up the little ladder in three steps to the attic, Albus was already submerged in old objects and dust. "Find anything?" Rose asked hopefully.

"Yes!" Albus said triumphantly. "A Prewett family tree," he said, handing it off to Rose. She unfurled it six feet before it stopped unrolling.

**The Purest and Powerful Family of Prewett**

_**Vacuus Veneficus no es Lost**_

As far as Rose could tell, it dated back to the 1700's and at the very bottom was four names: **Molly Prewett (**_**October 30th 1949**_**) **with a line connecting her name to **Arthur Weasley**. Alongside Molly's name were two others, these two with dates of death with their birthdays: **Gideon Prewett **and **Fabian Prewett**.

"Grandmum said Mafalda and Orville were her cousins," Albus reminded her. "Check Grandmum's aunts and uncles."

Rose did so. Grandmum's parents had been named Galahad Prewett and Morgaine Fawcett Prewett; Galahad had two brothers, one named Ignatius Prewett married to Lucretia Black Prewett and the other named Melchior and he was married to—

"Oh yuck!" Rose declared. Melchior Prewett was married to Great-Great Aunt Muriel!" The two of the shuddered mutually at the thought of Great-Great Aunt Muriel.

"Let me see," Albus said, shifting his way through the old papers to Rose's side. "Great-Great-Aunt Muriel was a Bloxam before she married. But what's this funny little black mark doing there?" He asked, pointing to a smudge below **Mordred Prewett **and **Evaine Parkington**'s names. Rose touched it carefully, her finger going through the cloth easily.

"It's a hole." She said. "Looks like it got blasted."

"Find anything yet, you two?" James called out as his head popped up, the rest of him climbing up into the attic followed by Louis and Fred.

"What did Grandmum do to you?" Rose asked hopefully.

Louis groaned. "We're on kitchen duty for the next week so you better have found something good for us," he warned.

Rose shook her head. "We found the Prewett family tree, but there are no Orvilles or Mafaldas on it." She said, gesturing to the cloth in her lap. James and Fred peered over the end of it, before they also poked at the black smear, their faces falling.

"Weasleys," Fred finally said. "And honorary Weasleys," he added with a nod to James and Albus. "I believe that this means our dear, darling, beloved Great-Great Auntie Muriel is the grandmother of a _**Squib**_."

All five of them paused there, silenced by the severity of this sentence. Even the ghoul stopped it's groaning for a moment.

"A _squib_?" Albus asked in a hushed voice. "But how?"

Louis fingered the blackened whole carefully. "Lots of the old families would remove squibs and blood-traitors off the family trees like this. Remember the Black family tree, where Uncle Harry showed us where Sirius had been?" His voice lowered. "Besides, it fits, doesn't it? Remember what Orville Prewett said, about how he had to live as a muggle? Why else would he unless…" Louis let his voice trail off as his cousins sat on the dusty floor of the attic stunned.

There was another small silence, this time broken by Grandmum Weasley. "James! Fred, Louis! Your kitchen duties start now, boys, those dishes are waiting to be washed!" The three of them groaned, but quickly headed towards the stairs.

"Put it all back, you two and then push the ladder back up," James instructed.

Rose smiled. "No pranking us," she reminded him, her pale blue eyes glinting.

"You and Albus are off-limits to us until October 10th," James said solemnly as he mock-saluted her, his upper body vanishing through the floor and down the ladder.

She and Al quietly put away the papers scattered on the floor and she rolled the tapestry back up before they settled them into the trunk. Then, almost impulsively, she asked him.

"Do you think Mafalda's father is a squib?" Albus squinted at her and then shrugged.

"He might just be a muggle who knows Grandmum," he offered.

"Their name is _Prewett_, Al." She reminded him. Albus didn't say anything else. Neither did she.

Mum was going to pick them up tonight; Dad was working longer hours tonight because this was the WWW's busiest time of year in Diagon Alley. Everyone else having already gone home and Mafalda never emerged from her bedroom. She and Hugo ended up playing six consecutive games of chess, Rose winning four. Hugo was a stick-to-the-book sort of player while Rose just focused on getting to the King. Both of them had been taught since they were three by Dad and neither of them had defeated him. Only Albus had done so yet.

Finally, the fire flared green and her Mum's head was floating there among the flames.

"Mum!" Hugo cried out, hurrying over to the fireplace. Rose jumped up and dashed after him, grabbing their bag of stuff from home. But Grandmum Molly was faster and bent down to greet her youngest daughter-in-law.

"Hermione, dear, I'd like to talk to you for a moment, please, it won't take long." Grandmum needled. Her mother's coffee-brown eyes widened briefly, and she opened her mouth quickly.

"What did they do? Oh, if they broke something, Molly, I'll replace it for you, don't worry—" Grandmum coughed and smiled benevolently.

"Oh no, nothing bad, at all, just a small _private_ matter." Grandmum Molly emphasized as she herded Rose and Hugo out of the living room back into the kitchen and slamming the door shut.

Rose crammed her ear to the crack between the door frame and door, but heard nothing but a faint buzz of conversation. A minute later, the door re-opened.

"Oh, and Molly, Ron and I are taking them to Diagon tomorrow, so we'll be happy to help you out there."

"Oh thank you, Hermione," Grandmum said graciously. "I thought that you'd be the most help to me." Then Grandmum Weasley turned away and back to her grandchildren still waiting to go. Without hesitation, both of them launched themselves at her and hugged her hard.

"Bye Grandmum," Rose said brightly, before accepting the handful of dust from the flowerpot Grandmum held. With a jaunty step, Rose stepped into the fireplace, where her mother's head had disappeared from and the green flames now gone. "Granger-Weasley Grove, Upper Flagely!" she said loudly, dropping the dust clenched in her fist as the green flames shot back up and Rose spun out.

Now Rose spun out of the fireplace and was almost immediately engulfed in her Mum's warm hug. Rose sniffed, a calming aroma of coffee, ink and roses that Mum always smelled of, the scent she associated with the light brown hair that was as wavy as her own and bright and warm brown eyes. Then she was released and the scent faded as Mum hurried over to Hugo, who was now climbing out of the fireplace.

Rose stepped back as excited barking and the clicking of small nails came at her, growing louder with every step, as Cannon and Sabre came running to greet them. Rose scratched their ears as the two crups wagged their forked tails at her.

"Rose, Hugo, come here; I have something I need to tell you." Mum said firmly as she led them to the couch. Rose felt her stomach lurch. Had Grandmum found out about their trip into the attic?

Uncertainly, they both sat down on the couch under Mum's watchful eye as she took in a deep breath. Rose gulped. Mum's deep breaths were never good.

"Mum, is it about Mafalda's Dad being a squib?" Hugo asked piped up next to her.

Rose felt her jaw drop open as Mum's jaw opened too. "Hugo Septimus Weasley, how on earth did you know that?"

"It was easy!" Hugo said earnestly. "I remembered that Grandmum's second cousin was a squib because he was the one who grew up to be an accountant and was responsible giving Great-Great Aunt Muriel's husband a heart-attack!" Rose stared miserably at Hugo. Her little brother was a memory freak like that.

"Hugo!" Mum snapped. "He did not die of a heart-attack!" Both of them looked curiously back at Mum before she relented. "He literally blew up over the news," she admitted. Then she gave them both a long stare.

"I expect you to be nice to Mafalda then. I imagine poor Mafalda must be very upset to be alone with a bunch of strange wizards and so you will all be on your best behavior, won't you?" Mum said sternly. There was no question about how the question should be answered.

"Yes, Mum." Rose muttered disgruntled. She didn't think there was anything poor about Mafalda, except maybe her attitude but she knew better than to say that.

After dinner, Rose excused herself to run up to her bedroom, her feet thudding loudly on the staircase. Hurtling up them, she reached the second floor, spun to her left and barged into her room before collapsing on her Chudley Cannons bedcover.

Rose rotted through her bed table's drawer before withdrawing a pen and paper and then she grabbed the book, _Fantastic Beasts and Beings and Where to Find Them revised by Luna Scamander_ off the bed table as a writing surface.

_Dear Al,_

_Mafalda's Dad is a squib! Hugo of all people figured it out by himself and asked Mum if it was true. And apparently Great-Great Aunt Muriel's a widow because her husband 'blew up' over it!_

_Anyways, we are going to Diagon Alley tomorrow to pick up school supplies and then we'll be going to the Burrow for Aunt Ginny's birthday. Tell her 'Happy Birthday' for me, will you?_

_Tomorrow,_

_Rose_

Her letter finished, Rose got off her bed and headed downstairs to mail it. Before she flounced out of the room though, she shot it a distasteful glance. The pink flower walls were really childish nowadays, Rose decided. And she was going to be thirteen in December. Maybe her parents would let her redecorate. Her Dad, Rose was sure, would have no problem with it as long as any Quidditch posters were of the Cannons.

Rose scampered down the stairs and hurried into the kitchen to the ornately large birdcage that held their three owls. "Sydney," Rose hissed quietly. "Sydney!" Sydney was the family's owl that her Dad said they had bought in Australia once. The other owl that the Weasleys owned was Athena was the family's eagle owl, that her Mum used to send important papers to; the 'legal eagle'.

Pig flew frantically over to her voice, missing the open door and smacking straight into the cage. Rolling her eyes, Rose pushed Pig away as she let Sydney out and tied the letter to her leg securely. "You're going to #12, Sydney." Rose instructed before the owl soared out the window.

On the morning of August 11th, Rose jumped out of bed, her feet thudding loudly on the floor. She was an ordinarily not a morning person, but on days planned for trips to Quidditch matches or Diagon Alley, Rose would wake up earlier than needed to be. Or it might have been the two owls beak-rapping at her window that had woken her.

Rose quickly hurried over to the window and pushed it open as Pluto and Sydney soared inside and landed on her bed. Impatiently, Rose left the window open to follow the owls to her bed and snatched up Albus's reply first.

_Rose,_

_It's a good thing that James doesn't know what a genius Hugo is and is convinced he'll be a 'Puff or else I would have been attacked by James's new WWW tricks. He wouldn't let me into my room for over half an hour while he dismantled the traps. You wouldn't believe the amounts of bangs!_

_Albus_

Rolling her eyes at Albus's reply, she tossed it on to her pillow and took the letter from Scorpius's grey owl. Pluto blinked his huge orange eyes at her, before nipping her fingers and soaring out the window.

_Rose,_

_I had a dream about you last night. You were bitten by a snake but you chased it off. I hope this dream wasn't an omen that you are chasing away your more Slytherin friends. I hadn't heard from you since July, so I thought I should write._

_It has been boring here all summer. Uncle Theodore took my cousins off to Spain and there is no one else my age nearby. If your parents would allow it, I'd ask you and Albus to come and visit me. All I've done is finish my homework before July, read my way through our new spellbooks and fly around peacocks all day._

_See you September 1st,_

_Scorpius_

Smiling slightly at Scorpius's hesitant, yet dry wit that infused into his writing as easily as his speech, Rose left the note next to Albus's as the scent of muffins wafted up the stairs and under her door.

Excitement growing, Rose charged out her bedroom, past Hugo's door and flew down the stairs two steps at a time. As Rose came running towards the open kitchen, her steps began to falter as a hand reached out and took one of the muffins off of the plate, Rose slowed as the red hair came into sight and she came to a sudden stop at the door as she realized Mafalda Prewett was sitting in her chair, at their table, eating one of her Dad's muffins and their pet crup, Cannon, at her feet, his two tails wagging.

* * *

**Ok, I'll admit to being a bit disappointed at the less than reviewed return. True, I've been gone for six months, but still...**

**I'm hoping to get out one chapter a week but I'm going to be busy this summer and there is a chance I'll be killed by little kids considering I'm working with them all summer. **

**I've also done a Oneshot for the Reviews Lounge! It is unfortunately non-compliant with this story, but it's for the Rose/Lysander or Rose/Scorpius shippers!**

**Special thanks to _Nightowl021_ for catching a mistake!**


	3. A Birthday From Buenos Aires

**The Beater and Badger**

Chapter 3: A Birthday from Buenos Aires

* * *

"But Muuummm! Why does she have to come along?" Rose whined. Hermione Granger-Weasley sighed. She sighed very loudly, as if she was reminding herself why she couldn't just strangle her and be done with it.

"Rose, Mafalda has never been to Diagon Alley before. Just a month ago, she found out she was a witch and her parents left her at the Burrow with some relatives she never knew of before. The least you could do is be nice to her." Her Mum tried to wheedle, but Rose wasn't fooled for an instant.

"But she's not nice!" Rose protested. "Besides, why can't Grandma or Grandpa take her to Diagon Alley?"

Five minutes later, Rose flew out of the chimney and smiled proudly as she managed not to fall flat on her face. Another explosion of cinders later and Rose was knocked to her feet as Mafalda exited the chimney ahead of her.

With a scowl, Rose pushed herself up and stumbled into the Leaky Cauldron just in time as Hugo came out skidding to a halt.

"Scourgify," she heard a warm voice say as the ashes vanished, leaving her frizzy curls bright again. Rose turned to see the owner of the Leaky, Professor Neville's wife and Elora's mum. Hannah Longbottom was a pink-cheeked, soft and round woman with a thick blonde braid. In one hand she balanced a trayful of dishes and the other grabbed a hopping toad. "Hello Rosie Weasley," she said in her light-toned voice. "Picking up school supplies? I hear you're in Hufflepuff, like I was!"

"Yes." Rose said. "Is Elora around?" Hannah Longbottom smiled and pointed to a door. "Take Dolores into the kitchen, the girls will take care of her," she added as she pushed the squelching toad towards Rose.

Hullo Hannah," Mum said as she emerged from the chimney. "The Leaky's looking in good shape." Mrs. Longbottom beamed as Rose scampered away quickly.

She pushed the door open and Dolores hopped out of her hands and away from her as she marched into the kitchen. A teenaged girl with the same hair as Hannah snagged the toad in her soapy hands.

"Are you Elora's friend, the one in Hufflepuff?" the girl asked. Rose nodded along. _So I'm the friend in Hufflepuff now? _"I'm her sister, Angela. I'm a Hufflepuff too and I'm the Head Girl this year." She said, the pride evident. Now that Rose knew for sure that Angela and Elora were sisters, she could see the family resemblances between the sisters: rosy cheeks. Otherwise, Angela had a round face, hazel eyes and pretty blonde hair while her younger sister had more of a heart shape to her face, darker eyes and hair that could almost pass for brown.

Behind Angela, that head of hair that almost passed for brown popped up as Elora stood up holding her arms full of cooking tools.

"Rose!" Elora cried out as she hastily set the bowls, spoons and cups down on the table. Rose sidestepped both of her siblings before she squeezed past and settled next to Elora as they hugged each other tight. Rose was still four inches taller at least, but Elora was growing a bit; her bangs were pushed in half to each side and the top of her head reached Rose's ears.

"How have you been doing?" Rose asked as they broke apart and Elora picked up an egg.

"My scars have all healed except one," Elora said cheerfully as she cracked the egg and tossed the shell away. "And I'm not having nightmares so much anymore." Rose's eyes widened as she felt something rub against her leg until a blur of white jumped up on the table. Elora absentmindedly rubbed her hand along Tomcat as she poured several liquids into the bowl. "But I'm grounded until school starts, so I'm not allowed to leave the Leaky Cauldron." She said ruefully.

The door banged open and Mafalda was there, looking disgruntled.

"Rose Weasley," she accused. "It's time to _**go**_!"

"Whose's that?" Elora asked curiously as Tomcat licked at her spatula.

"Trouble," Rose said grimly.

Two and a half hours later, Rose was panting like a crup in the dry August heat. She could feel the straps of her tank top sticking to her sweaty shoulders and she winced as it touched her sunburn. A Weasley with more freckles than before and sunburn was not a happy Weasley and that's why she glowered at the still pale Mafalda.

"Well, that's your schoolbooks, potion supplies, an one hour visit to both Quality Qudditch Supplies and Madame Malkin's." Mum was saying as she wiped her forehead off with the back of her hand. Rose looked at Mum enviously; she turned brown in the sun, growing tanner by the minute. "All that's left is Ollivanders and Uncle George's shop." Mum finished. Rose and Hugo cheered delightedly, forgetting the heat as a feverish delight came on.

Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes was _**the **_joke shop of all joke shops. In over twenty years, Uncle George had bought out Zonko's, Filbuster's Fireworks and was one of the leading chain stores in the Wizarding World. Rose's Dad was Uncle George's co-owner and as a Weasley, she benefited from the 30% discount; one of the many discounts including 50% off for all twins, 5% off for Hogwarts students, one free item to the student with the highest detentions for the month at Hogwarts(She and Hugo were forbidden to even attempt for it by Mum) that her Dad was responsible for as one of his many brilliant business strategies.

As they passed Eeylop's Owl Emporium, Rose could see even from this far away, the flashes and hear the whirling and bangs that came from her uncle's shop. Eagerly, Rose skipped ahead of her parents, Hugo and shoved past Malfalda as she hurried down to 93 Diagon Alley. A small gaggle of kids aging from six to Rose's age were gathered around the shop windows, oogling over the assortment of tricks and treats before them. But Rose ignored the flashy explosions and hurried into the shop.

It was packed with customers, mostly pre-Hogwarts or students that Rose didn't recognize. On the shelf next to her flashed a color-changing sign reading "Skiving" in red and before she could finish reading "Snackboxes—now in 14 different illnesses!" it had already changed to green. To her right was an aisle full of 'School Supplies'; fake wands, Self-Inking, Spell Checking, Smart-Answer and Ink-Squirting (actually Augrey feathers charmed) Quills and her Dad and Uncle George's new products: Weasley Wisecracks, a candy that for as long as you sucked it would offer a wisecrack to anything said and the Mouth Morphation; changes your voice with every sentence! Rose skipped past the Wonder Witch aisle full of the oldest customers she had seen yet, most of them carrying _Witches Weekly_.

Hugo, clutching a few of the Self-Inking Quills, pushed past her as he hurried to the backroom where Uncle George and Dad kept what they called their more serious line: Decoy Detonators, Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder, Shield Hats…Mafalda appeared then next to Rose, scowling. Rose had yet to see her look even slightly happy so far today and she had never seen anyone unhappy in Uncle George's shop before.

"I'm _**bored**_," Mafalda stressed. "It's so noisy in here," she complained as two eight year olds ran by grabbing packets of Garroting Gas of a shelf. Rose scowled at her right back.

"Go sit outside on a bench and read then." Rose snapped. "Once Dad's done, we'll come out and get you." She asserted, glaring at Mafalda.

"Fine!" Mafalda said coolly, taking _A History of Magic _out of her Flourish and Blotts bag and walking out, taking care to slam the door on her way out and making the bell ring.

Wrinkling her nose, Rose immersed herself in the wonders of WWW surrounding her.

"Rosie-Posie!" Dad called out as he parted his was through the crowd and hugged her close to his chest. Rose gladly threw her arms around him. Her Dad was tall and slightly bumbling, wearing magenta robes that clashed badly with his now faded to a dull rust shade of hair. Her Dad, who taught her to fly before she could walk and took her to Quidditch games and let her help him make new toys for the shop.

"Are we ready to go, Rose?" Dad asked as he ruffled her already unruly red curls.

"Yep!" Rose said cheerfully, as she stared up over a foot above her head to those pale blue eyes of hers. "Let's go, Dad."

"Wait!" Mum cried out. "Where's Mafalda?" Rose huffed impatiently.

"She's waiting outside for us on a bench, Mum" Rose said. "Now let's go so we can get her already."

Outside, Mafalda was sitting on her park bench next to a witch with a squished face and pert nose that was scribbling away on her list as Mafalda got up and sauntered towards Rose as Hugo and her parents broke out of the crowd behind her.

"Are we ready _**now**_?" Mafalda drawled idly, throwing curious glances at them as Rose's parents exchanged scrunched-up glances.

Rose snapped back. "Yes, we are!" Before anyone could reprimand her, Rose started leading them away from the crowd of WWW and elsewhere through Diagon Alley.

The ragged bunch reached Ollivanders with no difficulty, except in getting their numerous bags in the door. The shop was kept dark, an oddity amidst the sunshine and brightly lit shops alongside it. The newly repainted door twinkled to alert the witch behind the counter as Rose suddenly recognized her as the short blonde haired witch who sold them her wand last year.

_Ash and Dragon Heartstring, twelve and a quarter inches, quite sturdy, that wand…_

"Hello Verity," Mum said promptly as Verity came around, idly twirling her own wand as dust lifted itself off counters and threw itself in the dust bin.

"Good afternoon," Verity spoke lightly. "Here for the young Mr. Weasley I saw last year? Oh, I didn't realize you had another daughter." She amended as Mafalda inched her way past Hugo who was crouched down watching the dust fly.

"She's not—"

"—not my _**sister**_—"

"Mafalda is a relative of Ronald's and we offered to take her to Diagon Alley with us to get her's and Hugo's wands." Hermione interrupted Rose and Ron smoothly.

"I see." Verity continued smoothly. Well, then, Mr. and Miss Weasley—" she began.

"It's 'Prewett'." Mafalda cut in coolly.

"Very good then, Miss Prewett." Verity's emphasized, but her face remained neutral. If you'd both just hold out your wand arm—your writing hand now."

As the measuring tape measured every possible place including from armpit to armpit and from nostril to nostril, Verity hurried back behind the counter and poked her head in the door.

"Mr. Ollivander? I have a Hugo Weasley and Mafalda Prewett here for their first wands."

"Send them in," Rose craned to hear the faint reply. The tape measurer snapped shut as Verity escorted them to the back. Rose could remember perfectly how a year ago she had been pushed back there with the strange man with the luminous eyes. Mr. Ollivander was very old now and overly nervous about small spaces and lots of people, it seemed or so Mum had told her last year before they entered the dark shop.

"Well now, Mr. Weasley," Rose could hear him saying in the back, the voice sounding muffled. "Shall we try out this one then? Elm with Unicorn Hair, nine and three-quarter inches—"

Even with the door shut, Rose could still see the sparks of burnt orange flashing beneath the door as Hugo presumably tested the wand.

"Hmm…you don't often see a wand and wizard take to each other on the first try, but I suppose I do get lucky about that on occasion—Verity, write down this wand for Hugo Weasley then while I try out the beech wand with Miss Prewett then!"

Hugo bounded out, clutching his new prize, beaming delightedly as he offered it to Verity for her records. Rose grinned at him wickedly smug as she felt her own wand in her pocket, fingering it from tip to end as she noted for much longer her's was.

"Verity!" He was calling now. "Fetch the oak and unicorn hair one, would you?"

"No, no I think the nine inch phoenix feather might—"

"Let's try maple, that might do the trick!"

On and on it went, Verity scrambling around the shop as she snatched up wands and ran back to pass them on to Ollivander, his voice growing louder and more excited as each one failed.

Then on wand number six, an explosion of jade and reddish-purple sparks went off.

"That's it then!" She heard Ollivander shouting. "Verity, write it down for the records then, that's a dear girl, Cedar and Dragon Heartstring, Nine Inches, Flexible!"

"Hermione! Ron! Rose and Hugo!" A cheerful tenor voice called out as the Weasleys and Mafalda emerged into the Leaky Cauldron again. Neville Longbottom strode towards them, absentmindedly carrying a watering can as it dripped over his shoes.

"Neville!" Mum said delightedly.

"Good to see you!" Dad reached forward and slapped him on the back. Rose laughed at how dwarfed her Dad looked compared to her teacher. Although round, Neville was taller than he seemed and broad-shouldered while her Dad was just a beanstalk.

"It's a shame we don't have enough time to chat, mate," Dad said apologetically. "But we need to floo out of here if we want to get to the Burrow for Ginny's birthday."

"You have excellent timing as usual, Ron." Neville told him with a smile. "The Floo's blocked up. We are expecting arrivals from Buenos Aires right about now and until they get through, nobody can use it, you know what Long-Distance Floo is like."

Mum frowned and checked her watch. "We _**could**_ take the Knight—"

"No!" Dad said vehemently. "You can't make me take that monster again! We'll just have to either do side-along-Apparition or we'll wait."

"They should be here in a few minutes Hermione," Neville promised. "Besides, I think you'll want to see who it is." He added with a wink.

"Who?" Her mother asked interestedly. "Is the Prime Minister, the Ambassador?"

"Better," Neville said with a grin as the water can spilled further.

They waited there as Ron and Neville swapped drinks and stories for half an hour before the fire grew green and sparked alarmingly. Then it shot a boy out of a cloud of cinders. His hair was the color of dead straw and shaggy. Rose had never seen wider eyes, except for Mr. Ollivander's, but this boy's eyes were pale hazel, almost the color of amber or gold. His eyebrows were so pale they could hardly be seen, but they were arched and were rather thin.

Then another flew out of the fireplace. As the smoke cleared, Rose found a duplicate of the first boy there. Both of them were an inch shorter than her, and every feature was identical.

The fire burned green again and a man came out after them. He was not much taller than her Dad, but broader-shouldered. His hair was white blonde, more dramatically so than Scorpius's but his eyes were the same as the boys.

In a final puff of green sparks and smoke, it propelled out a woman with waist-length dead-weed colored hair and the widest eyes colored like mist. She wore an indigo colored tunic with a yellow scarf tied around her hair and falling down her back and black leggings, her hair swept up in a ponytail to reveal earrings made of distorted plums.

"Oh." Luna Scamander said lightly. "I see we have a welcoming party."

"Ginny!" Her Dad shouted loudly as he opened the door. "Ginny, we brought you a birthday surprise and I'm sorry we're late!"

"It hasn't changed much at all, has it?" Luna said wistfully as she took in the Burrow's kitchen. Aunt Ginny walked in then, her face breaking out into a huge grin before she rushed in Luna's arms.

"Luna!" Aunt Ginny cried out. "You're home!"

"No, I'm at your old home, Ginny." Luna said vaguely. "Are Harry and your children here too? I brought Rolf, Lorcan and Lysander with me and Ron and Hermione brought Rose, Hugo and this other girl, Mafalda."

"Everybody's here," Ginny said as she lead them towards the living room. "We're celebrating my birthday." Luna frowned.

"It's not your birthday yet. It's still the tenth you know."

"The time difference!" Mum hissed as Luna blinked.

"Oh yes, I suppose Time does make a difference. I also suppose it's lucky I brought your present along." Luna said brightly as she was led into the mass of Weasleys waiting for them.

Rose stepped into the room; there was Aunt Ginny leading Luna and her parents over to Uncle Harry, Uncle Bill and Uncle George and Aunt Angelina were over by the wireless and Granddad as an announcer shouted "The Arrows are leading, 80-20 now!" Fred, Louis and James were nowhere in sight, but she suspected it was probably better not knowing their whereabouts. Roxanne was with Lily and Hugo as she eagerly brandished a Weasley Wisecrack package; Lucy and Molly slouched in chairs next to each other. As Rose helped herself to some of Aunt Ginny's birthday cake in the kitchen, she felt a tap on her shoulder. Turning she found Al and the twins staring at her.

"Uh, hello," Rose said.

"Hello," the first one chirped. "I'm Lysander."

"And I'm Lorcan," the other one chimed in.

Lorcan and Lysander didn't match at all, no matter how identical they looked. It was like a games of finding the differences. Lorcan was barefooted but wore a crooked tie of sky blue and margarine yellow and two silver rings on the same finger. The back of his hair reached his shoulders and the top of it would fall into his eyes like a sheepdog if not for the coke-bottle, light green-shaded glasses that forced the bangs to stick out over top. Lysander's hair was a bit shorter so that his ears poked through, with a few small untied braids thrown in, and around his neck—

"Are you in Hufflepuff?" Rose blurted out hopefully.

"Yes, I am," the twin called Lysander said as he tugged at the yellow and black scarf. "And Lorcan's in Ravenclaw."

"I thought you said you came from Argentina," Albus puzzled.

"We spent our second year of schooling in Brazil." Lysander explained as they sat down at the table to eat birthday cake. "There was a possible sighting of a Crumpled Horned Snorkack last summer so we rushed out to South America and it was so exciting that we forgot about school and had to go to Iracema Universidade de Feitiçaria instead."

"A Crumpet Corn what?" Rose asked blankly, wiping a bit of frosting off her lip.

"A Crumpled Horned Snorkack." Lorcan said promptly. "We didn't find it though Luna says they're more commonly found in Sweden anyhow."

* * *

**Hello again! Ast informs me that today is the release of HPB, so I thought it would be fitting to release Chapter 3 as well! I've been planning to introduce the Scamanders for awhile now, so this chapter was a fun one to write! Some of you may have noticed that I wrote a NON-compliant oneshot for the Reviews Lounge starring Rose, Lysander, Scorpius and Albus, so you might want to check that one out!**

**Also for my readers, I have a new poll up on my page and I'm curious where I should branch out my fanfictions too next...**

**Next Chapter: Heading back to Hogwarts and I introduce a new member of the Hogwarts staff! **


	4. Hugo and the Sorting Hat

**The Beater and Badger**

Chapter 4: Hugo and the Sorting Hat

* * *

Rose had only seen a dragon once before, and she had been standing two hundred yards away with her Uncle Charlie and the dragon, as it was repealed by a powerful ward to keep it within the reserve. It had been massive and vicious, ready to strike out and lash until it was satisfied. Still, Rose privately thought she'd rather tackle a full-grown, angry dragon than her short-tempered Mum in a hurry. She was quite sure that Dad would agree with her—although she didn't understand what _canaries_ had to do with it.

"Hugo! Listen to your sister, she'll be watching you on the train to make sure that you'll be fine—and find Hagrid as soon as you get off the train so you don't get separated from the other first years. Write to us tonight, won't you, Hugo? We'll want to know what house you'll get into and no, you will not be disowned for getting into any house other than Gryffindor even if it's Slytherin," Mum rattled off as she pulled them through King's Cross, Dad puffing behind them as he tried to drive both trunks at once after them. "and watch out for Mafalda—I told Grandma that she could depend on you two for anything."

Impatiently, Rose tugged on her mother's hand, determined to drag her and her little brother along if she had to. They were late enough as it was and even though it was Hugo's first year and he should be as excited as she was last year so that she was dressed in her uniform and at the station forty-five minutes early, _**he**_ had only caused to slow them down by calmly and painstakingly re-checking his trunk twice fully and then re-opening it to make sure he had the latest thing that Mum suggested he take with him.

Rose's tugging had apparently gotten Mum's attention, her head whipping towards Rose as Dad finally managed to catch up to them, grinning proudly as he came to a triumphant stop. Then Rose's trunk toppled out on to the ground, to Dad's distraught expression.

"And _**you'll**_ write to us three times a week, and _study_! Your schoolwork comes before Quidditch, young lady," Mum admonished her. Then she swooped down on Rose and Hugo, smothering her as Mum clung to them like a life jacket in the ocean. "Oh, I'm going to miss you so much! It will be too quiet at home now—Socks! Did you pack enough socks? Ron, open Rose's trunk and make sure there's enough socks in there!"

"Mum!" Rose howled, aghast. "I packed my socks! I packed everything and the train is leaving in five minutes and I'm not on board yet!"

"That's _six_ minutes," Hugo corrected her as he squinted at the clock.

"Shut up—"

"Rose Nymphadora and Hugo Septimus Weasley—" Her Mum started flaring up, before her Dad rolled her trunk up to them and quickly intervened.

"Bye, Rosie," he said quickly, dipping in for a kiss on her cheek. "Have a good term and beat everyone at Quidditch, ok? And don't forget that grades come first if you want to top Malfoy again," He instructed before pushing her up on to the platform, heaving her trunk next to her. Rose gave her parents a quick kiss and a wave before darting on to the train, leaving Hugo behind to give his drawn-out good-byes.

Rose carefully eyed the corridors for any passing prefects before she pulled out her wand and surreptitiously intoned "_Wingardium Leviosa_," and the trunk lifted upward on its own accord, hovering easily. She grasped the top of the trunk, to disguise that it was enchanted, as she set off.

A few compartments down she found the messy hair Albus that sported next to the pale sheen of Scorpius's hair. Through the glass, Rose could see them playing Gobstones, which squirted Albus as she slid the door open and flicked her wand, her trunk springing back up and floating into the storage above where three trunks were already stashed.

"Oh, hello there!" Elora Longbottom said brightly as she entered the compartment after them. Tomcat was at his mistress's heels obediently, although his eyes settled on the hooting grey and tawny owls in their cages on the seat next to Scorpius. Elora took a seat next to Albus and Tomcat leapt into her lap with a purr. Scorpius reached down to grab his pack of cards and the kneazle quickly turned his pale green eyes and threatened him silently to come closer.

"I think that cat of yours still hates people, Elora," Rose scowled as she rubbed at her hand. For some reason, the almost-fully-grown white and splattered kneazle had taken an instant dislike to anyone except his owner and made his feelings well known to anyone who came in tail-length of him.

"No, he doesn't," Elora soothed him as the kneazle in questioned purred contentedly.

As the whistle blew and the train began to chug, the compartment door slid open again and the non-glasses wearing Scamander twin poked his head in.

"Does anyone have a small, active animal they might lend me?" He asked, his eyes lingering on Tomcat.

"If anyone lent you that animal, you would need to borrow a new pair of hands too," grumbled Rose. She had yet to forget how Elora's pet had mauled and clawed her arms last April.

Albus cut in now, Elora pulling Tomcat closer to her as he hissed and she shot an accusatory look at her and Scorpius. "Sorry Lysander, all we've got here is two owls and a generally anti-social kneazle in this compartment."

Another student came down the corridor then but stopped as he reached Lysander and the open door of their train compartment.

"Are you the kid who wanted a small pet?" The tall and gangly boy asked, his voice still squeakily high. _Probably hit his growth spurt early_, Rose reasoned. Grandma said the same thing happened to her Dad.

"Yes. Yes I am," Lysander said bemusedly. "Do you know where I can find one?"

The kid held up a tiny-looking rabbit by the scruff of its neck. "Sell you it for three galleons," he coaxed. Rose's nostrils flared; three galleons for a baby rabbit that should still be nursing was despicable! But before she could whip out her wand, Lysander had already dug into his pockets, pulled out the coins and was cradling the little bunny as the boy hurried off.

"I was hoping for a grown-up animal to help me, but I guess it wouldn't hurt to wait on the Chocolate Frog Card Sorter," Lysander commented as he now entered the carriage.

"The what?" Scorpius asked.

Lysander waved his hand erratically. "It was my latest invention!" He babbled. "It separates the cards for you but I needed an animal to run the device for me. I suppose it can be held off for now though…I'd like to work on something new for a while. Does anyone have anything to drink?"

"Err, there's Tomcat's milk?" Elora offered vainly.

"May I?" He asked, taking the milk bowl she offered, dipping her finger into it and offering it to the rabbit who suckled on it, its long ears twitching. Tomcat flexed his body as if about to jump, but Elora held him back and stroked him.

"Lysander!" Rose heard someone call out. "I found a card for you!"

Through the compartment door window, Rose saw Lorcan Scamander turn the corner and see his twin sitting with them as he hurried towards them, carrying a copy of _The Quibbler_.

"Oh, so you found an animal to use?" Lorcan said interestedly, the loudest Rose had yet to hear from him, as he laid the newspaper down, it's front titled with _Crumple-Horned Snorkack Sighting!, How to Identify a Vampire _and _Splattergroit Secrets_.

"Oh no," Lysander said as he re-dipped his finger. "I took this from a boy for three galleons. I'll just wait until it's grown enough before I work more on that invention."

"Well, when you do, I have a new Chocolate Frog card for you to practice with," Lorcan said amicably as he sat cross-legged on the floor.

"Why can't you just use magic to work your invention instead of using the rabbit?" Albus volunteered.

The twins regarded Albus as if to judge his seriousness.

"That's not the point," Lysander said dismissively. "I make all of my inventions almost completely by hand, in the Muggle way, just to see if they can be done. And then I usually dismantle them and make something new."

"You dismantle them?" Scorpius blurted out.

"Well, I keep my notes on how I built it," Lysander considered. He held up his new pet now, studying its snuffling nose with interest. "You know, I don't think we have any Muggle-adoptable pets at home, do we Lorcan?"

Lorcan considered this, counting off on his fingers. "According to Rolf, we have one fwooper, and two owls, an Augrey, a firecrab, three hippogriffs foals…and now a rabbit."

"You call your parents by their first names?" Rose remembered how they had called them Luna and Rolf last night.

"Oh, when we were little," Lysander assured her. "But now that we are old enough to do magic, Rolf and Luna insists that we are equals and ought to call each other by first names." He nodded, satisfied, and offered the rabbit another milky fingertip. "I really should come up with a name for it," he added thoughtfully.

It was hours later when the whistle blew again, and the doors of the train slid open, the students pooling out and onto the station platform. Rose glanced once more into her compartment, seeing Elora close Tomcat into his carrier and Scorpius stroke Pluto's feathers before withdrawing and coming up to her.

Rose let the crowd carry her out, as they headed in a different direction than she had gone last year. Sure enough, Hagrid's booming voice was growing fainter as he called out, "Firs' years! Firs' years over 'ere!" Surrounding him appeared to be a group of the first years, all of them so tiny; Rose was convinced she had never been that small a year ago. Far enough away so that Hagrid's call had faded stood a row of carriages, pulled by what she knew were invisible thestrals.

As students milled around, pulling their friends into carriages that set off towards the far away lights, Rose inched closer to the head of one carriage. Rose didn't want to see somebody die—but just because it was invisible didn't mean she couldn't _feel_ it.

"Here," she heard somebody say, and a hand pulled on hers', guiding it until she gasped. Rose felt something warm and solid underneath it. She looked up then, as she ran her hand along its silky yet bony neck, seeing Lysander there, grinning at her, his hand still cupping the rabbit to his chest.

"Luna can see them," he explained lightly. "so she's shown them to me once before. But they really like Lorcan especially."

Albus appeared then, and he looked blankly between them, Rose's hand appearing to rest gently in mid-air.

"Why aren't you getting into—_Oh_!" Albus's voice rose high into a crack as Rose grabbed his hand and pressed it against the thestral. His green eyes widened. "It's so nice," he murmured, hesitantly stroking it. "They're really not that scary, are they?"

"Don't let the thestrals eat you up, Al! They tend to gobble _snakes_ up in one bite!" James yelled out the small window as his carriage strolled by. Albus flinched and dropped his hand as Rose felt the thestral's head move through the neck muscles under her hand and she presumed it rubbed its hand against Albus as she saw his hand rise and rest there in mid-air, before he dropped it, his face bearing a hint of a smile and walked back.

"We should get in the carriage," Albus said as he opened the door, releasing a stale smell of mold and straw as he climbed in. Rose reluctantly followed as Elora ran up to them and climbed in after them, Scorpius and Lysander entering the cramped carriage after Lorcan, who was humming and rubbed the air as if the thestral had turned it's head to greet him.

The carriage ride was swift, but not smooth, as it rocked and rumbled over rocks and ruts in the well-worn path, Elora falling into Lorcan's lap once. Rose peered at the window over Scorpius's shoulder as they passed the tall stone gate entrance, topped with a pair of winged boars. Then, suddenly, Hogwarts castle rose out of the ground before them, lit brightly against the night sky.

The front oak doors were opened already and they merged into the mass of students, losing their friends quickly as they pushed forward through the entrance hall to the Great Hall. The Hall was alight with thousands of tapers floating in mid-air, the banners higher above where they wouldn't be burnt, bright colors against the dark sky. Rose beamed as she caught sight of the fluttering yellow, a black badger roaming across it and she quickly broke free of the crowd to join her table.

Rose looked up and down the table as Lysander took a place next to her, and she recognized most of those in her year; with the exception of Molly, the only other Weasley in her house, and now Lysander, she knew very few members. _Well, you weren't exactly the perfect little Hufflepuff you will be a year ago,_ Rose reminded herself. A year ago, she had miserably sat here, barely eating, as she tried to figure out what could she have said to make the Sorting Hat put her in the wrong house. She remembered writing a desperate letter home, hoping that someone would realize they had made a mistake with her sorting and being very hungry that night.

Not anymore though. Rose knew that the Sorting Hat was right, and this year she was going to prove it. She would be a great Hufflepuff like Cedric Diggory, whose portrait hung in the Hufflepuff den, or Nymphadora Tonks, her namesake.

The Great Hall quieted as the doors swung back open; Professor Sinistra was leading in two lines of first years to the front of the room before a three legged stool, where the Sorting Hat perched.

Rose leaned over next to Lysander and hissed, "Neville did the Sorting last year!"

"Really? I thought Professor Jones did it when I was here," He said unperturbed. Angela Longbottom stretched herself towards them, the Head badge glinting from the candlelight.

"The Heads of Houses take turns every year for the Sorting Ceremony now to promote House-Unity, so shush!"

Satisfied, Rose turned back to the front of the Hall and the Hat's brim ripped open wide.

_**Another song for me to tell**_

_**Of Hogwart's Founders Four**_

_**And how they always Sorted well**_

_**And left me to do their greatest chore**_

_**You may find yourself in Gryffindor**_

_**Home to the brave and the bold**_

_**Where belong heroes from story-lore**_

_**Or perhaps Ravenclaw's where you'll be told**_

_**Among those of intelligence and wit**_

_**Where there's always a yes and never no**_

_**In Hufflepuff will your loyalties be knit**_

_**Those patient to work for what they sow**_

_**And will reap their rewards to excess**_

_**But Slytherin's where you belong**_

_**If you're ambitious to reach success**_

_**For they will surely get there before long**_

_**Every student sorted already put me on**_

_**And it's time to Sort as I finish my song**_

_**So let you follow where others have already gone!**_

The Great Hall burst into applause, as the tip of the crooked hat bent itself towards each of the four tables and the rip closed itself. Professor Sinistra cleared her throat, the Hall quieting as she unrolled his scroll and read off it.

"Crowley, Evan," she said. A small-shouldered boy emerged from the pack before his thin hair was swallowed by the Hat.

"SLYTHERIN!" the Hat announced to a loud cheer from Albus's table.

"Dossert, Charlotte," She read again. This time a pretty dark-haired girl sat on the stool before the Hat sent her to "Ravenclaw!"

Rose cheered for three names straight as "Dubbins, Jack", "Dugan, Heather", and "Enders, Ellen" came scurrying between the rows to Hufflepuff, brown-haired and green eyed Heather squeezing in next to Rose.

"Hello," Lysander said to Heather. "I like your name." The first stared bewilderedly at Lysander, taking in his braids, the wand stuck behind his ear, and the small rabbit curled against his black robes.

"Th—thank you?" She said weakly as Jeremy Hill and a girl named Rachel went to Gryffindor.

Lysander nodded sagely while Rose tried not to snigger. "It's a flower name like Rose's," he said matter of fact, as June Iyette came hurrying to Hufflepuff and Professor Sinistra called for "Lenape, Bianca".

Colin MacDougal and Jasper Nathaniel had joined the first year Hufflepuffs and Tawny Opallen was running off to her house when Professor Sinistra called "Prewett, Mafalda." Rose slumped backwards, her nose wrinkling as she saw the red hair disappear under the Hat's brim. Barely a minute later, the Hat screamed "SLYTHERIN!" The Slytherins applauded as Mafalda resurfaced and with a smug smirk, walked over and sat down with them. Rose glowered at her, before she shot a sympathetic look to Albus. He scowled and gave a quick nod. Their inital impressions of Mafalda Prewett had proven correct: she was sneaky and sly and probably still rather rude even if that wasn't a Slytherin trait.

The first years were almost done with only five left now. "Pritchard, Edward" went to Slytherin, Abbey Quilven went to Ravenclaw and "Selwyn, Amaryllis" and "Tribbens, Titus" were sorted before Hugo was called up. Rose and the Gryffindors behind her held their breath as the Hat paused, the tip of it flicking back and forth as it thought.

"Ravenclaw!" The Hat shouted, the Ravenclaws leaping to their feet in cheer, Hugo jumping off the stool as Headmaster Sprout rose to her feet, Sinistra carrying away the Sorting Hat and stool. The Gryffindor Weasleys shook thier heads but clapped along as Lucy shuffled down a seat and patted it, gesturing to Hugo that he should join her as another Ravenclaw Weasley. Down the table from Lucy, Dominique stood up and gave a wolf-whistle with her two fingers in her mouth. Although absurdly pretty and veela-like in appearance, Dominique was the first of the un-Gryffindor Weasleys and her support was obvious. Rose even gave off a cheer, even as a tiny thought flickered through her head that her Gryffindor parents had no offspring in thier house.

"Welcome!" The Headmistress said delightedly as the Hall quieted. "I have a quick announcement to make before we can begin our feast." Several students cheered at this, James and Fred actually stood up on their seats and whistled.

"Madame Pince, our school librarian, has decided to retire after sixty years of working here and we have all appreciated—" James and Fred were no longer the only students standing to cheer as some even threw their hats into the air. Rose even pumped a fist in exuberance, much to Lysander's bemusement.

"I am sure that this school will graciously welcome our new librarian, Madam Fia Dubvessa," Sprout said, extending a hand towards the end of the table. Fia Dubvessa was probably in her early thirties and wore tinted glasses upon a pale face; her hair was pinned up with long curls.

"And that is all, so let the feast begin!" The Headmistress concluded as dinner began, the potatoes popping up next to Rose's left hand.

* * *

**I saw HBP at the drive-in (and they still play 1950's cartoons during Intermission!) and it was fantastic, the best since COS! My Sister's Keeper on the other hand...what a snoozer! **

**Also, the wonderful Astrea Severin Orion Black, aka Ast, is now my grammar/spelling beta for this series because as many of you probably have realized or graciously pointed out to me, I'm bad at grammar. **

**For those who like to know what's going on with my life...I am sleep deprived and running after children all day. I currently am tanned with a spray-on for my latest show and I've dyed my hair dark brown-black. The hair actually looks pretty decent, it's the tan I hate. Two weeks until I get to scrub myself silly and get a decent night's sleep!**

**Also in honor of the two years since DH was released, I'd like to admit that I was so very, very wrong about everything that I theorized would happen. **


	5. Weasley Worries

**The Beater and Badger**

Chapter 5: Weasley Worries

* * *

"Rise and shine!"

"Good morning Edith!"

"Wake up!"

Rose groaned audibly, even as she burrowed herself deeper into her bed. Out of the many things she missed about Hogwarts, the Hufflepuff's wake up call was not one of them.

"Wake up Rosie!"

Every house had a unique wake-up system and Hufflepuff's had every person fourth year and up assigned to another, younger student to be responsible for their wake-up call until fifth year when they were responsible for themselves and their younger student. And either by some misfortune, cruel karma or simply because Rose had been specifically picked, Molly Weasley, the other Weasley Hufflepuff and Rose's least favorite cousin, was her morning greeter.

"Rose! It's time to get up!" Molly commanded in her 'I'm in charge and responsible' voice to match her new, gleaming Prefect badge that flashed dangerously with the rim of her glasses.

In a flash, perhaps seeing Molly raise her wand on the stubborn student, a smaller, warm hand touched Rose's back. Instinctively, Rose started to rise.

"Rose?" Mary Jo Cattermole murmured. "We've got to get up for classes now," she said as she pulled off Rose's bumblebee-inspired bedcover. With a soft sigh, Rose lifted herself off the mattress and rolled out of bed, ignoring the expression on Molly's face.

An hour later, Rose was finishing her bowl of cereal when Professor Jones came down from the staff table and schedules began to be passed down. Professor Hestia Jones was a pink-cheeked, black haired, rather jolly witch who taught Charms, which Rose liked because she was naturally very good at it, especially at levitation. When Professor Jones reached the sixth years sitting next to them, she handed the second year schedules off to Daniel Naire so she could discuss classes with her older students.

Rose was the last of her year to get hers. As she finished munching her cereal flakes, she studied it. She wasn't worried about not having a class with her friends since all classes were comprised of two houses in the same year, but rather she was looking for free periods to practice up for the Quidditch try-outs.

Her mood quickly turned as sunny as the ceiling though, noticing the double free periods she had after DADA, followed by History of Magic and Herbology in the afternoon. Then Edith, on her right, dropped the newspaper she had received on the table, clearly bored with it as she returned her attention to her plate. Gingerly, Rose pushed it off of her spoon and picked up her spoon again to finish her breakfast before dropping it.

On the front cover of the newspaper was a photograph of _her_. Snatching it up, Rose held it close to her nose and studied it carefully. It was undoubtedly her in the photo; the untamed and sweat-swept red curls proved that, even without her Dad in magenta robes standing next to Mum, carrying a list, and Hugo and even Mafalda in the shot with her. They were standing in front of WWW, in Diagon Alley, she recognized, from that day in August. The article was at the bottom of the page and took up most of it, headlined by the title: _**WEASLEY WORRIES**_.

_**We've seen them for the past twenty years in the papers as a family surviving the woes of the Second Wizarding World and now thriving with a family run business, the ever-popular Weasley Wizarding Wheezes, owned by George and Ronald Weasley, pictured here, and their new families as well. Every Weasley, and even the Potters, seem to be a model family comprised of Head Girls, prefects, Quidditch players, Head of Ministry Departments and even members of the Daily Prophet. But are they? **_

_**A surprising source reveals the truth. Despite all the high expectations in store for the first-born child of Ron and Hermione Granger-Weasley, Rose Weasley was sorted into Hufflepuff. But even more shocking, the second son of Harry Potter, named Albus Severus Potter, was sorted into Slytherin last year, the first Weasley or Potter in at least a hundred years if not longer. Another source confirms that he was met with opposition from within his own family! However, that is only the beginning of the woes of the Weasley family as (**__Continued on page 4__**)**_

Her ears turning tomato-red, Rose yanked the paper open to page four and continued on.

_**one of Albus's new friends is none other than a Malfoy! Is he perhaps living up to his namesake's and making friends with more dubious sorts? **_

In disgust, Rose threw the paper back down and huffed away angrily, leaving her cereal behind as she stormed off to DADA. How dare that reporter talk about her family! And of their sorting! There was nothing wrong with being in Hufflepuff; after all, Cedric Diggory, the painting of the real boy who was both Quidditch Captain and Hogwarts Triwizard Champion, in the Hufflepuff Common Room that she often talked to and Tonks Lupin were both Hufflepuffs! Anyone who knew Scorpius and Albus would also know that they weren't Evil Dark Lords or Death Eaters in training; it was absolutely absurd!

Rose arrived to Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom twelve minutes early, Professor Thomas was still setting up for her first class. Young and pretty, Professor Thomas had blonde hair that fell down her back, in a way that Rose could never hope to tame her own hair, with eyes such a dark shade of blue they looked purple. But as pretty as her features were, they didn't hide the terrible scars that ravaged her throat and arms, nor did their Professor attempt to hide them. As she had told them last year in their first class, they were the price she paid for her life against being beaten by the Dark forces. And that, as she told them, was why she took this job, to teach others how to defend themselves.

But even the scars didn't distract from her beauty. In fact, Professor Thomas looked even prettier than usual, perhaps a bit pale, even compared to Professor Delacour, who was Aunt Fleur's sister and a quarter-Veela.

"Good morning, Rose." Professor Thomas said warmly as she sorted through a small hill of papers. "Did you have a good summer?"

"It was fine, thanks." Rose said slightly brusquely. She was still furious and wanted to start learning jinxes to take it out, especially after having spent all last year learning about the history of The Dark Arts, although she had missed the last almost forty years because of a visit to the Hospital Wing at the end of last year.

Professor Thomas opened her mouth, but abruptly shut it again as another early bird walked in to find her seat. Fifteen minutes later, the last of the Second Year Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws had trailed in and taken their seats, Scorpius sliding in next to Rose as Duncan turned to find Mary Jo already sitting with Edith, leaving him with Martin Goldstein.

"All right, class," Professor Thomas was saying. "We'll first cover this year's curriculum, which will be even more important this year for you to know since I won't be here to cover it—"

"Why?" Aaron Boot blurted out. "Is the job cursed again?"

"No, no," Professor Thomas said firmly. "That's not the case, Mr. Boot, but that does bring me to the second part of what we'll cover today, thank you. Class," she raised her voice. "As some of you may not know, I am happily married—" Daniel Naire whooped and clapped, grinning his gap-toothed smile as Mary Jo sighed. "and I found out over the summer that our family is growing again." She blushed, her cheeks turning cherry pink, before she coughed and continued on. "So, sometime in November, I'll be taking my maternity leave until mid-February and you'll be covering a fair chunk of the material with the substitute."

A hand was raised in the back. "Who is the substitute?"

"The Headmaster has yet to assign someone that job, Miss Nelthrope, but rest assured there will be someone," Professor Thomas said.

"Do you think we could get _Harry Potter_ to come in?" An excited voice asked behind her.

Rose laughed as she turned around in her seat. "Uncle Harry? He's too busy being Head of the Auror Department to come down and be a teacher," she asserted confidently.

"Getting back on subject now, class," Professor Thomas continued. "This year, you'll be covering magical beasts and beings, particularly those who lean towards the darker arts, and how one can defend themselves from them. We'll be starting with something simple though and leave the hard stuff for the substitute. Now, if everyone will open their copies of _Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them_ to page twenty, we will start with grindylows."

Forty-five minutes later, the bell rang and above them, even through the stone floors, they could hear the rush of Binn's history class. "All right, students!" Professor Thomas called out as her class began to grab quills and spare pieces of parchment and shove them into their bags. "Finish the questions on grindylows and remember, next time we'll be taking a field trip down to the Lake! Rose Weasley, please wait a moment, I'd like to ask you something."

With a shrug to Scorpius, Rose picked up her bag and carried it up to the teacher's desk as the last of the stragglers filtered out into the hall.

"What class do you have next, Miss Weasley?" Professor Thomas asked, looking for something in her bag on the floor.

"History of Magic," Rose said. "And congratulations," she added, cursing herself for not noticing the bulge beneath her robes, but she _had_ been behind a desk!

"Thank you," the teacher smiled graciously. "Dean and I are so excited for our second child that even Sienna is too!" she said, referring to her husband, Dean Thomas, a well-known cartoonist for the Daily Prophet and their first child, seven-year old Sienna Thomas, that Rose had met at one of Aunt Ginny's work parties. "But my family is not what I wanted to talk to you about." Professor Thomas said. "It's yours I'm more concerned with."

"Mine?"

Professor Thomas had found what she was looking for and slapped it down on the desk. It was this morning's edition of the _Daily Prophet_. Rose could feel her lip curling.

"The _Daily Prophet_ had a very strange article on your family, Miss Weasley. Dean wrote to me about it too and he's working on suppressing any future articles from this reporter who I frankly don't trust any farther than I can throw her, but she has genuine evidence of a freely-given interview that makes it hard to deny. I was wondering if you knew anything about it beforehand?"

Rose shook her head furiously. "I never talked to anyone that day," she said pointing at the picture. The professor nodded as she rubbed her belly.

"I didn't think so, but Dean asked me to make sure. He and your Aunt can't protect your family's privacy without proof that nobody in your family gave the information." She stood up now abruptly, scribbling her signature on a piece of paper and handing it off to Rose. "The baby insists I need to use the bathroom, so I suggest you head off to class now, Rose."

It wasn't until after a nap in History in which Binns didn't even notice her 'ten-minutes-late' arrival and an hour of working in dragon dung up to her elbows did Rose return to the Den, as the older 'Puffs called the Hufflepuff Common Room. As the portrait of the fruits opened for her, Rose noticed with satisfaction that it was mostly empty except for a few in her year and younger first years. Rose made her way over to the wall where a single, black framed portrait hung.

"Hello Cedric!" Rose chimed cheerfully. It was an amazing thing a nap and grinding the morning paper in dragon dung did for one's mood, Rose mused as Cedric looked down at her and grinned back appreciatively.

"Rose Weasley," Cedric Diggory said in a pleased tone. "Did you have a nice summer?"

"I did." Rose informed him. "I spent almost everyday at the Burrow and I played lots of Quidditch with my cousins."

Cedric nodded, the brow smoothing out. "I see, practicing your flying for this year."

"Yep!" Rose said brightly. "I want to be a beater on the team this year. I hope try-outs are soon."

"Gawain plans to hold them in two weeks on Saturday," He said casually. Rose froze.

"Gawain?"

"Gawain Branstone. Captain, Chaser, Fifth Year Hufflepuff." Cedric amended. "I was talking to him this morning."

"What did he say?" Rose asked anxiously.

"He's looking for two new Beaters, a Chaser, and a Seeker." Cedric said easily. "It's his first year being Captain and he wants to make the team pick up its slack."

"I'll be there," Rose said determinedly.

Rose _was **determined**_ to make the team. She had spent last summer playing Quidditch everyday. And now, she had convinced Scorpius to work with her.

"Rose, are you sure playing Muggle games will help you make the team?" He asked again.

"I'm positive!" she insisted as she knotted her unruly red hair back, shouldering the beater's bat. "Baseball may not be on broomsticks, but it's the same fundamentals as playing seeker and beater."

Scorpius eyed the beater's bat and Quaffle she had scrounged up from James suspiciously. "So what do I have to do?" He asked, obviously dreading his agreement to help her train.

Rose held up the Quaffle. "Name a target and throw this towards me," she instructed. "I want to see if I can hit it." She threw it to Scorpius and took a stance, clutching her bat.

With a mutter that sounded like, "any sport where you can't fly sounds mental," Scorpius caught it and scoured the grounds for a target.

"Hit the beech tree," He ordered and whipped it at her. With a satisfying smack, Rose struck at it and it sailed into the upper branches of the beech before falling flat.

An hour later, Scorpius had gotten bored of throwing and refused to volunteer as a target. He headed back towards the castle, leaving Rose to stay out for another half-hour before admitting hunger and abandoning her practice.

As she came into the Entrance Hall, Rose heard a pop coming from a broom cupboard and from there emerged a house-elf. Rose was well-accustomed to seeing house-elves and knew at length and in great detail what her mother had done to secure better conditions and more rights for them, but she had never seen a house-elf here.

Interested, she crouched down to its level. This house-elf was thin, with features that reminded her somehow of a frog; it's skin was rather swarthy and it's eyes dark, and it wore a proper yet roughly-made shirt and pants and had a tie stamped with the Hogwarts Crest.

"Is you'se be a Weasley, Miss?" he asked, staring just as curiously back.

"Yes," she told the house-elf. "I'm Rose Weasley. Do you know my mother then?"

Its face broke out into a scowl. "I am wishing I did, Miss, so I might be telling her what those bad boys did to poor Byme!"

Rose blinked in surprise. She had met many house-elves, but never an upset one before. "What bad boys?" she asked nonplussed.

"Mr.'s Weasleys and Potter!" the elf burst out. "They let that poltergeist into the kitchens again and he's causing the house-elves so much distress that Byme doesn't know what to do and he is afraid that he'll be fired!"

"Fired?" Rose questioned. "Fired from what? You can't fire your house-elf anymore."

"Fired from the position as Caretaker of the Castle and Head of Hogwarts House-Elves!" he moaned. "Tis the highest honor for a house-elf and Byme is afraid that the poltergeist will get him fired and sent back to the kitchens."

"Peeves? Is that all the trouble?" Rose said suddenly as a thought sparked in her brain. "Could, could you take me to see Byme please?"

The house-elf looked up at her in surprise. "I am Byme," he said muffled and mollified.

"Well then," Rose said as she gained stride, "Perhaps I could help you with Peeves then."

The house-elf stopped whimpering and instead scrutinized her.

"I don't think Peeves would listen to anyone, Miss Weasley!" Byme said doubtfully. "But for all the lack of good you do, you are good to us house-elves, not like those other Weasleys who cause accidents and don't clean up after themselves like last year when one of them dumped that color potion!" Byme babbled.

Wisely deciding not to say that she had dumped the potion, Rose took the elf's hand and allowed him to lead her down to the kitchens near the Hufflepuff den.

Inside the kitchens behind the tickled pear portrait, Peeves was "Wheeeing!" as he dunked an un-roasted chicken into a pot of boiling water. "Chicken soup, anyone?" He cackled gleefully while house-elves moaned and shuddered from their hiding places. Byme began to whimper beside her, clutching at his ears and trying to drag them over his eyes.

"Peeves!" Rose hollered. "What are you doing to these elves?"

Peeves dropped the oranges he was now lobbing at the elves cowering under the tables and quickly swept the hat off his head in a salute.

"Miss Weasley, your prankness!" He squealed. "I was just having fun with these poor little elves who have to work all day and have no time for fun," he wheedled.

Rose lifted her left eyebrow and sighed. "That was nice of you, Peeves, to try to make them have fun," she maintained. "Perhaps they should return the favor."

Peeves swooped in closer suspiciously. "After all," Rose continued. "All you do all day is have fun so I'm sure the house elves will be nice enough to teach you how to do _work_."

With a shriek, Peeves abandoned his mischief and slipped out of the kitchen quickly, leaving Rose with the house elves of Hogwarts.

The kitchens were silent for a few moments and then the door swung open again and there was Lysander, carrying his new pet still.

"Could I get some milk, lettuce and baby carrots?" He asked.

* * *

**I'm still alive! My tan has been scrubbed off because my show is over (sobs in the corner) and I had a regular bedtime again...but I have unfortunately started to get behind on my writing. Even worse, I still have full days planned until school starts in early September with my Drivers Ed, Job, Colleges, and my Theatre class. But never fear, I shall not desert thee for long! **

**As this chapter reveals, Filch has long since retired and been replaced thanks to Hermione by Byme the House-Elf! Even more importantly, Professor Thomas is going on maternity leave soon and the Weasleys have something to worry about now...**

**And to my reviewers, I love each and everyone of your responses, but has been wonky lately and will not let me reply, so I will thank my latest here.**

IH8Abbreviations:_ Scorpius is going to make his return! Although the Scamanders, particularly Lysander will be featured, Scorpius is still a main character and I've got some fun in store for him! I will also mention that one of the first years will be bringing trouble!_

Loonynamelass: _Quite possibly the show would have been wrecked anyways, considering the fury that was simmering beneath the surface from Olive and Amalthea, but the ashwinder did set the whole thing off. I'm so glad you enjoyed the kiss though! Victoire just needed something new in her life, that's all! ;)_


	6. Fia Dubvessa

**The Beater and Badger**

Chapter 6: Fia Dubvessa

* * *

"You know, I've never been down to the kitchens before, but I would have if I had known how to get in and what great service they give!" Lysander raved as he followed Rose back to the den, clutching a basket full of rabbit food and the rabbit. Rose bit into the warmly-baked peanut-butter cookie that she had taken and nodded eagerly.

Once she had swallowed, she asked "Have you come up with a name for your rabbit yet?"

Lysander shrugged. "I'm not good with names," he confessed.

"Welcome to the club," Rose replied. "Elora named her kneazle 'Tomcat' and Al and Scorp picked really obscure names that only they would get, 'Archimedes' and 'Pluto'. And that was after I spent _two_ _days_ before I convinced Albus that naming an owl 'Hen Wen' after a _pig_ would only scar it for life."

"Have you ever named something?" He asked as he pulled a carrot out and chewed the tip.

"Well, I've got two crups back home and Dad named the orange colored one 'Cannon' and Mum named the other 'Sabre' from _Babbitty Rabbitty_." She remarked idly.

Lysander regarded his pet appreciatively. "I think I might name it Babbitty," he said. "Or maybe Madam Dubvessa would have an idea."

"Oh, so you've met her then?" Rose asked. "Is she a bat like Pince was?"

Lysander sniggered. "You might say that," he said airily. "Would you like me to show you what she's done to the library?" Rose's eyes widened and she hurried on after him, spraying crumbs from her cookie.

The Library was still standing, the Restricted Section wasn't burned down and the books actually looked dust-free. The once spacious windows were curtained shut and candles glowed as they floated above in mid-air and from behind her desk was Madam Dubvessa. She still wore her sunglasses but was reading an old copy of _Lord of the Flies_. Was Fia Dubvessa blind? Rose wondered as the librarian stroked the book reverently. That would explain the glasses…

"Over here," Lysander whispered and she allowed him to lead her over to a bookcase that she didn't remember being there last year. He selected a book that looked at least as old as the one Madam Dubvessa was reading and handed it to her, prodding at the title. Curious, Rose lifted it up and read it off.

"_The Jewel of Seven Stars_ by Bram Stoker," she read aloud. She looked up at him and raised her left eyebrow up. "So?" She challenged.

Still grinning, Lysander took the book back and handed her another one. _Macbeth_ by William Shakespeare. "What do the authors have in common, Rose?" he asked as the title of the book the librarian was still reading flashed through her head.

"They're all muggle!" She cried excitedly. "She put muggle stories into the library!"

"Do you like muggle books?" an alto voice asked behind her.

Standing there was Madam Dubvessa who had emerged from her chair, still holding her story. She didn't seem to notice Lysander's rabbit and now Rose was convinced she was blind.

"My mum is muggleborn, and she read me a lot of books when I was a kid," Rose said politely. "But it's my cousin who really likes reading."

"Really? Is this your cousin then?" Madam Dubvessa asked.

"No, he's not…I'm Rose Weasley and my cousin is Albus Potter."

"I'm Lysander Scamander," Lysander introduced himself.

"Sometime you must introduce your cousin to me, Miss Weasley." Madam Dubvessa said. "He sounds quite a bit like my daughter, Claudia."

"Does she go to school here?" Rose asked curiously. Madam Dubvessa smiled fondly.

"Claudia is only nine, Miss Weasley. Although my older daughter, Cecilia, is fourteen," She said demurely as Babbitty the rabbit snuffled. "And Mr. Scamander, pets are not permitted in the library so I must ask you two to leave for now," she added, sounding amused.

As the two of them plus Babbitty left the library, Rose glanced back to see Fia Dubvessa settling back into her chair as she flipped the page of her book.

Rose's first two weeks back passed agonizingly slow in a blur of iguanas into goblets, trips down to the Great Lake with the DADA class to study grindylows, dreams of goblin rebellions in History of Magic, and flying practices with Scorpius in which Albus and Elora would sometimes tag along to watch. But it seemed to have gone too quickly the morning of the Quidditch try-outs.

For once in her life, Rose woke an hour before Molly was supposed to during the week and when she dawdled down to breakfast, she barely swallowed the crusts of her toast. Duncan Macmillan looked no better, a nauseated expression was on his face.

By ten o'clock, the benches on the Quidditch field were swarmed by hopeful Hufflepuffs clutching broomsticks as a darkly-freckled sixth year surveyed the few flyers keenly. On the pitch, twelve seekers going after the snitch. Among them, Rose spotted the top of Duncan's dark red hair on a seeker who punched their fist into the air as the other seekers groaned and flew back down to the earth, looking disappointed. One of them had the same hair as the successful seeker; he was jerking quickly through the air, his face looked pale even from the distance as he landed.

"Right, we have Amelia Macmillan for seeker!" Sixth Year and Captain Gawain shouted, taking the snitch from Amelia Macmillan as she joined the three chasers already picked. "All wanting to try for beater, come out on to the field now!"

Rose stood up and eagerly stepped on to the field as Duncan slunk to her empty spot, feebly muttering about how he got beat out by his sister because they never let second years in. Rose paid no attention to him though as she was joined by ten others.

"Your task is simple," Gawain blustered as he picked up a Quaffle at his feet. "The chasers will fly, tossing the Quaffle around…and I want everyone to try to knock the Quaffle out of their grasp with a bat while flying. Summerby, you're up first." He finished as he handed a fourth year a bat while the newly-picked chasers rose in the air, throwing the Quaffle around randomly.

Summerby flew at the chasers and their Quaffle, rolling the beater's bat around wildly before swinging it at the Quaffle as it passed by. But Douglas Whisp had thrown it hard enough that the bat rebounded off the Quaffle and hit Summerby in the face.

"Next!" Gawain barked.

"Weasley, your turn!" Gawain barked again six minutes later. In six minutes, three more people had embarrassed themselves and one third year named Casper Maloney hadn't hit the Quaffle but accidentally caught it.

Rose slung her leg over the broom and kicked off, the wind slipped by as she bobbed upward like a cork. Using one hand to steady herself and the other to grasp her bat, she waited for a throw.

Chaser Melissa Gleason threw it to the far side towards Nadia Bisnette but Rose flew through the chasers before swinging her bat towards the speeding red blur. With a thick thunk and pomp!, the Quaffle smacked into the bat and popped like a paper bag full of air. There was a silence after the pop as the Quaffle shell slipped to the ground. And then Gawain's whistle blew.

"I knew you could do it," Albus said pointedly when he finally was able to get a word in edgewise. Rose had come back from the trials beaming. Gawain had made her a beater and after some thought, announced Casper Maloney the new keeper and Gawain would be taking the other beater position.

"And our first practice is on Thursday after supper!" She babbled.

"That's really great, Rose, but I have to go now," Albus finally cut in. "I promised Hagrid I'd come down, he said he wanted to show off his surprise."

"A surprise? Oh, I want to come!" Rose said delightedly. "But where are Elora and Scorpius?" Neither of them had appeared during her happy rant to congratulate her and she was sure that Scorpius at least would have appreciated it being as much of a Quidditch fan as herself unlike Elora and Albus.

"Oh, Scorpius had an essay for Charms and Elora is scheduling those detentions she has to serve because of last year," Albus said. "Shall we go then?"

Hagrid was waiting outside his hut playing an instrument rather like a recorder but was roughly the size of a saxophone and judging by the quality, it had been hand-whittled. At his feet was a black puppy whose fur seemed so large it hung and drooped off of it and with huge ears and paws that could have easily covered Rose's hand.

"Where's Fang?" Rose asked immediately as they drew near.

"Ah, Fang teh Second passed away durin' teh summer, old age yeh know but I've got a new pup now!" Hagrid said, his expression clearing. "Say 'ello to Mopsy!"

Mopsy barked and wagged her tail excitedly as Hagrid got to his feet. "Cahme along now, we're going to teh Lake!" The path to the Lake was short and trees lined the way, a couple of beeches and an oak. The leaves barely rustled and only one fell to the ground, a Hufflepuff yellow one. Before long, the three of them and Mopsy were standing at the edge of the water where the grass was gone and the dirt turned to sand.

"Let me intraduce yeh to teh Squid's new neighbor," Hagrid announced and then he called out towards the water. "Miss Cyrene!"

Then, out of the previously tranquil lake, rose a giant horse, no that quite wasn't right. It's skin was a soft misty green and it's luminous eyes were amber. Attached to it's horse-ish head, was a long scaly neck that dove back into the water and rose out again farther into the Lake.

"It's, it's a—" Rose gasped.

"It's a Sea Serpent!" Albus said awed. The head of the Sea Serpent bobbed in assent.

"Her name is Miss Cyrene," Hagrid said humbly. "Profess'er Sprout brought her here from a little lake in Scotland, the way she was grown' an' all! I 'spect that yeh two are teh first teh to know."

"Is there enough room in there for her _and _the Giant Squid?" Rose asked curiously.

"It's about a 'undred feet down an' there's merfolk and such at teh bottom…grindylows, a cuppa of hippocampuses tha' belong ter teh merfolk an' of course teh Squid so I suppose there is a fair bit of room for her, Rosie, don't yeh worry." Hagrid said easily, waving her concerns away with a large hand. "She likes teh boats too, which is good fer teh first years…Per'aps sometime teh two of yeh or maybe your friends too could take a boat out on ter the Lake this fall."

Somehow, Rose suspected that "liking the boats" would translate to next year's first years being terrified by a giant sea serpent rising out of the lake.

Every Thursday night after supper, Rose ran down to the Quidditch pitch with her Cloudburst where she met her six fellow players. Gawain had his chasers work Casper through every possible situation the Quaffle could get through a hoop while he set Rose on Amelia's tail to see if she could stop Amelia from getting the snitch. Melly, as Amelia preferred to be called, had sharp eyes and a slim build that aided her in moving faster than Rose did, but she was determined to come between the seeker and the snitch and it paid off four times in the month of October practices.

On some nights, Gawain called them together for covert spying missions on the other teams to analyze their weaknesses.

"Ravenclaw's has only one good player and that's how they won the match last year!" He'd remark quietly as her cousin flew overhead. "Dominique Weasley is known for speed here; she's got the Jupiter 170 and we all know that is the fastest broom on the market—"

"She got it specially from Uncle Bill and Uncle Charlie for making seeker last year," Rose cut in absently.

"—and I think the only chance we have of beating Ravenclaw is to keep Dominique off of the snitch while the chasers score as much as they can. Rose, that's where we'll come in; I don't care if she's your half-sister and veela—"

"Cousin and one-eighth!"

"We're going to have to use bats, Bludgers and brooms to keep her away so Melly can find the snitch." Gawain concluded.

The spying of the Gryffindor team went similarly, except Rose had to take over at points to correct which Weasley was which so Melly was not trying to get the snitch from Louis the chaser while Douglas tried to score on Fred Weasley the second chaser instead of his sister Roxanne.

"All right now, Emmett McLaggen has played a pretty fantastic team here and all the Weasleys and Potter are on top brooms which makes thing trickier for us," Gawain said as he pointed them out from their hiding spot as the team passed around the binoculars. Casper handed Rose them and she lifted them to her eyes, following the players as they swooped and passed the balls. All of them knew what they were doing, they were tough and accurate, although Rose suspected that if McLaggen hadn't been Captain, he would have never gotten to be seeker when McKenzie Murrary was much lighter than most beaters.

Rose got around to introducing Albus to Madam Dubvessa by the end of the month and the two of them got along like chizpurfles in a cauldron. Soon, Albus was lugging around a collection of muggle literature to rival her Mum's and was sprouting the plots as they walked to class. Having only grown up around magical literature and the occassionally recitated story by Mum from her muggle days, the shelves of Shakespeare and Shaw were soon empty once Albus was shown them.

"And in _Dracula,_ he—" Albus started to ramble on their way to Transfiguration.

"I have a riddle for you," Scorpius announced as he ran up to them. Rose glanced up at him in surprise.

"Jokes, Scorpius?" Rose asked loftily. "I thought you were above such frivolous things."

Scorpius huffed at her. "I wouldn't ask if I didn't need a new bottle of ink for Binns's class right now and will be late for History." he retorted. Rose rolled her eyes at him.

"Very well, what is it?"

"'Why is a raven like a writing desk?'" Scorpius recited. Al hummed as she suddenly laughed.

"And you're in Ravenclaw? It's obvious isn't it—_Raven_claws use writing desks—"

"And that's what I said and we are wrong," Scorpius said smugly as Rose scowled back at him. _Git. _

"Raven…writing…writing—I got it." Albus said louder as his mumbling became coherent to him. Both Scorpius and Rose stared at him meaningfully.

"What?" Scorpius asked as she said "What is it?" at the same time.

Albus grinned. "Poe wrote on both of them," he answered, looking very pleased with himself.

"Whose Poe?" Scorpius asked. Albus sighed, shaking his head at them.

"Edgar Allen _**Poe **_was an American muggle, the first scary story writer. He wrote this poem called "_The Raven_" and he obviously wrote it on a writing desk."

"Albus!" Rose groaned. "How do you know these things?" Albus shrugged heavily.

"I read it in this book called '_Alice in Wonderland'_ by another muggle, Lewis Carroll, and _she_ actually reminds me of Elora—"

"Get to the point, Al!" Rose cut in.

"—But in the book, the Mad Hatter and March Hare—"

"The _Who_?_"_

"—ask her that riddle. It used to not have an answer, but in the sequel—"

Rose rolled her eyes and clamped a hand over her cousin's mouth. "In short, Scorpius, Albus read it in one of his muggle books and the answer is 'Poe wrote on both."

After Scorpius had promptly thanked them and run off, Rose turned to her favorite cousin, half proud and half exasperated. "If I didn't know that you were the one to charm James's broom green and silver last week for calling you Asp again, I'd swear you should be in Ravenclaw." She huffed. "No wonder Madam Dubvessa likes you so much!"

Albus blinked as he tried to keep in pace with her long strides, stuttering all the while. "What do you mean? I mean, I think she's very interesting and has great taste in literature, but don't you think she acts a bit odd?" He suggested.

"What are you talking about Al?" Rose asked. "I think she's just blind, that's all."

"Really?" Albus asked doubtfully. "So that's why she wears sunglasses and has such old books then?"

"Of course," Rose assured him as they entered Professor Delacour's classroom with beetles waiting on the desks. "Why else would she?"

* * *

**I hope all of Hogwarts's returning and new students had a safe journey back! :)**

**Has anyone else noticed any troubles with Doc X and formatting in Document Manager? **

**In a ploy to get more reviews out of my readers, I decided to follow Ast's and Barty's examples in asking my readers a question. Today's question is: Can you find the obscure, didn't-make-it-into-the-books name?**


	7. Trick and Treat

**The Beater and Badger**

Chapter 7: Trick and Treat

* * *

True to Hagrid's word, he let them borrow a boat for Albus's birthday on an afternoon. It was a Sunday, that 12th of October and their homework had been finished that morning, Rose scribbling up a conclusion by vaguely reciting the twelve uses of dragon's blood in time to pick up a small cake from the kitchen on her way to meet the others.

"Happy Birthday Albus!" Rose called out as she dashed towards the three and their boat, careful not to drop the cake. It had been nice of the house-elves to make it for her exactly the way Al liked it: white cake mix and the frosting had been generously dyed green and a particularly sweet elf named Feny had thought to add white lettering.

Elora was holding a couple wrapped gifts, including one that looked suspiciously like the wrapping paper had been singed as Albus and Scorpius were pushing the boat into the water. Finally, the boat drifted freely and Albus stepped in.

"Rose, Elora, get in already!" Scorpius called out as his pants steadily grew damper. Elora obliged and passed the presents off to Albus before climbing in and Rose followed her unsteadily. _Don't drop, oh please Merlin, don't let the cake drop!_

The cake mercifully made it into the boat unscathed as Scorpius pushed it and pulled himself into the boat with them. The Lake was beautiful today with amber and burgundy leaves trimming the trees. The Slytherins were practicing on the Quidditch field and some muggleborn students were playing a game that seemed to be half football and half baseball.

Rose was jolted back to the boat by Scorpius's elbow as Albus unwrapped a Wizarding chess set. Rose had thought to get it for him after he and Hugo's last game was interrupted by James playing with a Weasley Wildfire Whizbang. She could still remember how it smelled, like burning coal and cloth…it seemed so real…

Elora then shrieked and leaned back farther as the present with the charred paper burst into flames and a pair of fireworks escaped with a loud crack. Rose reached out to grab at it and as her fingers closed around the parcel, Albus yelled "No!" and the boat tipped over.

It was dark, she couldn't see the sunlight anymore and she couldn't breathe…Rose instinctively opened her mouth and choked as water rushed it. Then she felt something pull her gently and she grasped it, thinking it was one of their hands but it was cool and scaly. Rose's mouth opened again in surprise and she swallowed the water as Miss Cyrene pulled her out from under the boat and helped her bob to the surface.

Rose broke through and gasped, pushing red snarls out of her face as she coughed and rubbed at her eyes. It was then she became aware she was still clutching the gift tag from the fireworks. Although it was wet, she could still read it.

_To: ASP. _

_From: the three who can now prank you because your time is up. Happy Birthday!_

Rose fumed as she swam back to shore, Miss Cyrene compliantly pushing the boat back with her. Albus was pulling Elora, her bangs matted wet over her eyebrows, out of the Lake and then he helped her out but it was Scorpius who finally made her burst into hysterical laughter. During the boat tipping, the cake had landed into his hair; previously pale gold hair turned emerald green frosting and white cake crumbs that were soaking straight through.

The muggleborn players came running now, not looking at the drenched four but up at the sky. Following their glances, Rose turned her face up and a burst of color and pops filled the azure sky.

Albus, who was still holding his all presents, although wet and sticking to his soaked shirt looked up too and said clearly then, "You know, for a trick, that was a pretty cool birthday treat."

And once a firework exploded its way through the Gryffindor Tower window, Rose had to agree.

The birthday cake was now only good for turning Scorpius's hair dull green but Rose levitated the presents from the Lake and Scorpius had mastered an air-drying charm that he used on the presents and themselves. Albus finished unwrapping the rest of his presents; a book on how Arithmancy and Ancient Runes can be combined, a bag of Peppermint Toads, and from Lily and Hugo was a box of Chocolate Frogs.

"Oh, Al," Rose said suddenly as she reached into her pocket. "Lysander and Lorcan gave me this for you."

Thankfully, the Chocolate Frog cards that she had stuffed into her pocket in her hurry to the Lake had dried from Scorpius's spell, but Rose didn't hand it over yet. She was too busy staring at her uncle's face on the card.

_**Harry James Potter**_

_Also known as 'The Boy Who Lived' and 'The Chosen One'._

_Harry Potter is the only known survivor of the Killing Curse and defeated the Dark Wizard, Voldemort, ending two Wizarding wars in 1981 and 1998. A Triwizard Champion, the youngest seeker in a century, founder of Dumbledore's Army as well as a member of the Order of the Phoenix. He is best friends with Ronald Weasley and Hermione Granger, is currently Head of the Auror Department since 2006, married to Holyhead Harpy Chaser and Dumbledore's Army member, Ginvera Weasley, and has three children._

Uncle Harry was grinning bashfully and winking Al's emerald green eyes at his niece, but Rose could barely smile back. She had known for months now that her Uncle was 'the bloody savior of the Wizarding world' as her Dad had phased it, but to see to see how much of a hero that he got his own Chocolate Frog card was astonishing. And behind that card was her Mum's and then Dad's, but she didn't spare those two a glance because Dad had theirs framed above the mantle.

_**Hermione Jean Granger-Weasley**_

_Hermione Granger-Weasley is a civil-rights activist, Head of the Magical Law Department, founder of the group known as 'Dumbledore's Army' and fought in the Battle of Hogwarts. She is often regarded as the cleverest witch of her age and is proud of her muggleborn background. Alongside the founding of Dumbledore's Army, she started the group S.P.E.W. which has changed the laws on House-Elves to improve their status. Hermione is friend of Harry Potter and is married to Ronald Weasley, whom she has two children with._

_**Ronald Bilius Weasley**_

_Ronald is the sixth son of the illustrious Weasley family, best friend of Harry Potter, member of Dumbledore's Army and fought in the Battle of Hogwarts. He spent some years as an Auror, helping to track down remaining Death Eaters after the Second Wizarding War (1996-1998), most notably in the captures of Fenrir Greyback and Rodolphus Lestrange. Currently, he is a co-owner of the joke store, "Weasley Wizarding Wheezes", married to Hermione Granger and has two children. _

There was more. At least eight cards were sticking out of the pack but it was so thick and heavy in her hand that there had to be probably twenty. "What is it, Rose?" Albus asked, breaking her trance. Wordlessly, Rose handed over the cards of their family members and Albus became quiet too for a moment.

Second period, Monday morning, Rose found herself waiting outside the dungeons of Hogwarts, where the second year Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws shared Potions.

"Scorpius Malfoy!" Mafalda said as she sidled along next to him. The first years had just been released from Potions but she was in no apparent hurry to leave the classroom unlike the rest of the little Gryffindors and Slytherins who scurried towards the end of the hallway. "My friends have told me so much about you." She gushed. Another small Slytherin girl, with short black hair and a squished nose stood patiently next to her.

"Err, do I know you?" He asked. Mafalda dared to giggle.

"Oh, I'm Mafalda Prewett, related to the Weasleys. I'm sure you've heard of them—"

"Are you one of Rose's cousins then?" Scorpius asked her, nudging Rose's arm. Mafalda glanced, as if she hadn't even seen Rose Weasley before.

"Oh, yes of course I am." She acknowledged quickly. "Rosie is one of my favorite cousins, we even went to Diagon Alley together this summer—"

With this bold-faced lie, Rose's mouth fell open as she heard Mafalda prattle on. But before Scorpius could inject anything else, Professor Jigger came to the door, barking orders for the lollygaggers to get moving on. Rose gratefully allowed herself to be shepherded in as the black-bobbed girl and Mafalda vanished, but not before Mafalda Prewett waved cheerfully to Scorpius, turning his face tight and flushed.

The dudgeons was a chilly place to be and always seemed a little hazy from all the potion vapors, but it was an interesting one regardless as the cauldrons were always overflowing with strange smells and smoke, colors dancing in the air as Rose sniffed appreciatively.

"Class," Professor Isonia Jigger said as she re-entered the classroom of noisy twelve year olds. "Settle down students, we need to begin on Shrinking Solutions, page twenty-nine of your books. Pair up and get to work, I'll be grading this as a quiz." Many in the class groaned, but Rose scuttled closer to Scorpius at their table of four as he propped his book open to pages twenty-nine and thirty.

"We need half a handful of dead caterpillars, some shrivelfig and at least a pound of daisy roots to start with." He said quickly, efficiently getting their tasks separated. "If you want to bring the caterpillars to a boil, I'll chop up the daisy roots…"

"Scorpius, what do you know about the war?" Rose suddenly dared to ask.

"You mean besides the fact that a Dark Lord known as Voldemort tried to take over with ideas of pureblood supremacy with his followers known as the Death Eaters and was stopped because of the Order of the Phoenix, Dumbledore's Army and Harry Potter?" Scorpius asked dryly. "Nothing, really."

"Scorp, I'm serious," She said, entirely serious despite the nickname. "I mean about your family." The other tables were noisy with chatter, but theirs grew silent from her awkward question. "I probably shouldn't be asking, but I couldn't help thinking that _his_ ghost wanted to hurt us because of our families that had helped fight him, but what did your family did to, well, piss him off?" Rose whispered frantically.

Scorpius's face was pale but still smooth as he nodded. "You really want to know?" He asked dully. "My father and his parents were water-blood Death Eaters who betrayed him to save their lives and it worked. My grandfather had to serve time in Azkaban for being a Death Eater in both wars but because they betrayed _him_, my grandmother and Dad got off free. And you know what she did? She lied to the Dark Lord and told him that Harry Potter was dead." Scorpius said ruthlessly, throwing the cutting knife down on their table. "So I got to live out my childhood in relative peace with occasional side-remarks as to the fact that I'm a water-blood and from a stinking, cowardly Slytherin family."

They worked in absolute silence until they were only waiting for their potion to turn neon green, which the book said would take about eight minutes before Rose broke the tension.

"I'm sorry, Scorpius." She whispered. "I didn't mean to bring that up like that, I'd just been wondering about it since my parents told me, but I really got curious after Lysander gave me those Chocolate Frog cards for Al—"

"Don't worry about it," Scorpius said simply. "I'm not off half so bad as most like me are, being in Ravenclaw instead of Slytherin helps of course. And my mother's family stayed out of the war as much as they could but she can't help loving people with emotional issues." He insinuated.

"What do you mean, you're not off half so bad?" Rose persisted.

Reluctantly, Scorpius swallowed. "You know Zaneeta Selwyn? Black hair, in Slytherin, she came to my birthday party last year? She has a little sister, Amaryllis Selwyn, the one who is friends with that Mafalda. My family are old friends with her mother."

Racking her brains, Rose finally came up with a picture of a stormy girl with wavy black locks and nodded. "Was she that girl who fell down three flights of stairs and broke both her legs two weeks ago?"

"Her uncle was a big-time Death Eater; sentenced to Azkaban for life but he killed himself before the Aurors could get him. Plus she's a pureblood and in Slytherin." Scorpius said flatly, studying his cauldron intently.

"You don't mean—!" Rose exclaimed, horrified.

"Madam Pomfrey was able to fix her up in a jiffy." Scorpius said shortly and that was the only thing he said as Professor Jigger shooed them out of her class again for the Sixth Years as she lugged out a cauldron full of a almost gleefully leaping golden liquid.

This gave Rose plenty to mull over between classes and Quidditch practices as she began to observe the Slytherins for the first time since she had started school. They really tended to be a quieter bunch than the Gryffindors, most were good students too. Unlike the Hufflepuffs, Slytherins usually were found either alone or in gangs of them. They all followed dress code regulations, even the one third year girl she observed who enjoyed a punk look with purple tipped hair along with a nose ring. And surreptitiously, she realized that the detentions served by Slytherins almost always were in groups. Rose Weasley saw nothing that screamed Death-Eater, Evil, Waterblood, Pureblood, Dark Lord in Training. But she did see small spell burns, a slight bruise here and there, a hex from behind and all of their victims were silent Slytherins.

By the time Halloween had rolled around, the cold air and fallen leaves had actually brightened both Rose and Scorpius to their old enthusiasm. Suitably for the holiday, the sky was streaked with lightening and thunder as the clouds hovered ominously purple. Hagrid had carved jack o-lanterns the size of his waist and the Gryffindor ghost, Nearly Headless Nick had booked a ghostly orchestra which screeched and wailed it's way through the feast. The feast itself, was beyond anything Grandma had ever made in Rose's memory. Cauldron Cakes and Gummy Ghouls, Licorice everywhere, candy corn, pumpkin juice tinted red, bats shrieking above…

"Having a good holiday?" Madam Dubvessa asked as she leaned over Rose's shoulder. She precariously carried a goblet of red liquid too but seemed in danger of dropping it, despite her eyesight.

"Yes," Rose said delightedly, helping herself to the Sugar Quills.

"I do love Halloween," Madam Dubvessa said wistfully. "The best time of year for books that are something frightful…I do think I'll read _Hamlet_ tonight, Claudia borrowed _Macbeth_ I think last week." And with that, she drifted back towards the teachers' table.

Rose had just finished off her supply of Sugar Quills when the Great Hall went quiet as the Headmistress rose to her feet, and waited patiently for them. She didn't have to wait long though, as the hall quieted themselves for her.

"As many of you are no doubt aware," Sprout began. "That Professor Thomas is expecting." She gestured one, dirt-streaked hand towards Professor Thomas, who smiled and blushed slightly as she patted her rounded stomach. The teachers began to clap as a few whistles and cat-calls broke lose from James, Fred and Louis and laughter from their sycophants followed.

"As of Monday," The Headmistress continued. "Her maternity leave will begin until January. The substitute I have hired will be arriving this weekend and will start classes on Monday. I'm sure you will also wish Professor Thomas the best of luck and will give your new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher a pleasant welcome."

* * *

**Happy Birthday Hermione Granger! Mrs. Granger-Weasley is now the big 30 years old tomorrow so we wish her a happy birthday indeed. :)**

**School is going well and my writing's not doing too badly for the lack of time either; I've deleted some scenes that I can't remember for the life of me that I included early on and added some new ideas suggested to me. I'm immensely pleased with the next chapter, which I think will come out on Albus's birthday although we celebrate his birthday in this chapter. On other topics; I have a new obsession known as Glee. Wed. nights make me gleeful now. :) And I have a new poll up, please vote! **

**The answer to last week's question is: ****Mopsy****, Hagrid's new puppy. Mopsy was to be a dog-loving woman in Hogsmeade to counter Mrs. Figg. She was to take in Snuffles but Jo's editor suggested removing them to a mountain so they have an easier time with their conversation.**

**This week's trivia!: "Puckle", "Spinks" and "Spugens" were the original last names of what characters? *Hint: they appeared in all seven books!***


	8. Arguments and Awards

**The Beater and Badger**

Chapter 8: Arguments and Awards

* * *

"C'mon, Scorp!" Rose finally said impatiently. "We don't have time for this nonsense!" Scorpius turned towards her in shock.

"Scorp?" He managed to get out before Rose grabbed his elbow and pulled him along through the halls towards the third floor.

"Rose! Why are you in such a hurry?" He gasped. "Class doesn't start for another fifteen minutes at least!"

"I want to know who our new teacher is!" She insisted stubbornly. "We have this class before anyone else and we are the lab rats. I heard from Roxanne that Louis thinks we'll have a vampire and Al reckons it will be some auror from the Ministry but Duncan and Mary Jo decided that it's got to be Uncle Harry—"

"You can't possible think that we'd get a **_vampire_** for a teacher!"

Rose didn't even bothering replying as they had reached the DADA classroom and the door was closed shut. Twelve minutes early and nothing to do but mull and wait. With a sigh of resignation, Rose let herself slide down the wall to the floor and half-a-minute later, Scorpius joined her.

"That riddle was a really good one," she admitted suddenly. "Do you have any others?"

Scorpius started in surprise. "Oh, you mean the raven one? Well, I got this one last night_…There are four brothers in this world that were all born together. The first runs and never wearies. The second eats and is never full. The third drinks and is always thirsty. The fourth sings a song that is never good._"

They waited like that, passing riddles back and forth as the other students showed up from breakfast and stood around eagerly. At five minutes past the start of class, the door opened and Rose leapt to her feet as they filed in.

At first, she was disappointed; the classroom looked almost exactly the same as how Professor Thomas left it except her paintings had been taken down. But then her attention was caught by the new Professor standing by the chalkboard.

He was well over six feet and rather good-looking for his age, with broad-shoulders and a square jaw and wiry hair that had grown to his cheekbones. He didn't look like a vampire or anyone she recognized from the Ministry or her Uncle Harry.

The professor stared his class down until the silenced themselves and he began to take attendance.

"Bewley, Alain?" His voice was smooth and he spoke loudly as the hazel-eyed boy in front of Rose raised his hand.

"Bewley, Johanna?"

The roll call continued, as he occasionally intersected a comment or two directed at the student. "Ah, a Macmillan!" "Edith, of course, I know my own niece." But Rose thought nothing of it until—

"Malfoy, Scorpius?" Before Scorpius could raise his hand, the professor pounced. "Give my regards to your family…I believe that another member of your family has died of shame."

Scorpius twitched but didn't respond as their teacher returned his attention to the list, his eyes glancing malevolently back at Scorpius for a moment. Rose sat there, glancing at him in her seat until the professor reached her name last.

"and Weasley, Rose…" his voice was short. "I see you didn't get Gryffindor like the rest of your family."

And now the entire class leapt to their feet in outrage, Duncan Macmillan and Christine Nelthrope shouting at him. Rose could feel her face turning scarlet and her teeth were clenched. She wasn't even unaware that she had pulled out her wand until she found herself being knocked to the ground.

"And fifteen points from both Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw for disorder," the professor said as he picked up Rose's wand. "Also, a detention for Miss Weasley and Mr. Malfoy." He added as he dropped her wand on their desk.

"I didn't do anything, sir!" Scorpius blurted out.

"You incited your housemates," he retorted. "Take your seats, class."

Grudgingly, the class sat down with an audible thump that rippled through the room while the professor stared them all down again, his gaze smoldering.

"Well then, students, I am your new Defense teacher, Professor McLaggen and I tolerate no one who thinks they can just squeak by because of their family or that because I'm a substitute that they'll get it easy in here. Today, we will cover werewolves. Turn to page 341 in your books."

Biting her tongue, Rose and Scorpius opened their textbooks to a picture of the werewolf transformation as Professor McLaggen continued to talk.

"Werewolves are similar to vampires, in which humans are the preferred prey and they spread thier curse through bites. Originally human, they are infected by either a werewolf bite or genetics and turn from human to werewolf at the time of the full moon. Once transformed, they lose all humanity, know no boundary of morality, preying on whatever is unfortunate enough to cross their path—"

"That's a lie!" Rose shouted furiously, on her feet again. "That is a—"

"Miss Weasley," Professor McLaggen snapped. "Have you ever met a werewolf?"

"Teddy Lupin's dad was a werewolf!" she seethed. "Rolf Scamander is a werewolf, Teddy's sensitive to the moon cycles and my Uncle Bill prefers his meat rare now—"

"And had all of their lives destroyed by these miserable monsters." He said cruelly. "Remus Lupin suffered in poverty and loneliness and almost lost an education because of werewolves. Your teacher, Professor Thomas, was denied jobs for ten years because the scars marked her a werewolf victim although she is fortunate that the werewolf in question was not transformed at the time. And I believe that your uncle almost died from an infection of the scarring caused by a werewolf? Next class, students, we will be discussing the most infamous of werwolves who some might say has destroyed thier humanity. You, Miss Weasley, have been fortunate enough to never see the horror of being a werewolf inflicted upon humanity and I will ask you not to presume—"

"But the Wolfsbane potion was invented—" Rose retorted. McLaggen's face had turned a hideous puce and had a large vein throbbing in his forehead.

"Get out of my class, Miss Weasley." He said sharply. "And fifty points from Hufflepuff!"

"You _what_?"

"I got a detention," Rose snapped moodily at her cousin, who looked agog at her. "But you should have heard him, Albus!"

"You are probably going to get a howler now," Albus said, shaking his head. "You had a clean record too…"

"Shut up!" She barked now. "Al, he was talking about how werewolves are vicious creatures and that Scorpius was no better than them because he—"

"Is from a Slytherin family known for their involvement in the Dark Arts?"

Rose gasped, staring at him.

"How did you—"

"He told me last year while in the Hospital Wing one night. You and Elora were both asleep. He didn't think we want to be around scum like him, but I set him straight." Albus explained.

"And you didn't tell me?" Rose asked incredulously. Never had Albus kept such a secret from her.

"It's like Dad said," her Slytherin cousin said shortly. The memory of last summer and her Uncle flitted into her mind as she recalled it in perfect clarity.

"_What about the Malfoys?" Albus had asked, sharply. "What did they do to __**him**__?"_

_Her Dad had growled, almost scarily, his blue eyes darkening and his gaze narrowing. "The bloody lot of co—"_

"_They have paid their debts and I've forgiven them, Ron." Uncle Harry said quietly. Louder now, he spoke out again. "They did some terrible things to save their family and it came at a price to Voldemort."_

"I don't know every detail, Rosie, but Scorpius is our friend and he didn't do anything wrong," Albus said. "It's not his fault that he was born to an ex-Death Eater and into an old pureblood, Dark Arts family anymore that it's James's fault he has a swollen head for being the firstborn of the Potters."

At eight o' clock, Rose was not outside up fifty feet in the air, but was standing by Scorpius's side as Byme brought out the cleaning supplies.

"Professor says youse and Miss Weasley be bad and needing punishing," Byme said doubtfully. "House-elves do not like having children do our work but Professor insists you do this." Mrs. Skower's Magical Mess Remover was deposited ceremoniously at Rose's feet. "I have to be locking you both in now, to make sure neither of you try to leave," Byme said worriedly. "But once youse are both done, the door will know to let you out."

With a quick, humble bow at them both, Byme cracked and disapparated out of the Trophy room, leaving the second years surrounded by hundreds of ungleaming awards.

_Twenty-eight done_, Rose thought bitterly an hour later as she pushed a Special Services to the School award, given to Harry Potter in 1992-1993. As she came to realize around the ninth trophy, the awards they had been assigned to clean were all circa 1980 to present, covering all her aunts and uncles and cousins and their friends—and all of the Weasleys and Potters and Neville and Luna and Cedric Diggory and the Order and DA had countless trophies waiting for her to buff and shine them by hand.

As Rose scrubbed at some particularly greasy grime on the inside of the lettering RONALD WEASLEY, she did some mental calculations. In the school year of 1992-1993, her dad and uncle would have been—12. Her age.

Rose felt something heavy like guilt swoop downwards in her stomach. Her Dad and Uncle Harry had received awards for saving the school by the time they were her age. Her mum had been the smartest witch to ever take an examination and what had Rose Weasley done that nobody else had?

_You were top of your year_, She reminded herself. _The best at charms too…and you are only in second year and already on the Quidditch team._

A dark, little voice spoke out smugly, sounding similar to Mafalda Prewett's. _You couldn't remember the first of Gamp's Laws of Transfiguration on last week's quiz. And Hufflepuff's had the worst team for the last twenty-five years._

_I helped take down the Voldemort's ghost last year. _She thought sharply.

_Really? I thought that you were thrown into the Mirror and was knocked unconscious as well as almost killing Elora by breaking the Mirror over her head. If I remember correctly, Albus was the one who fought him, being the only one left after you botched it._

_I—_

_Distracted yourself with that Mirror. Scorpius saved you there. But it's really no wonder that Voldemort decided to possess him instead of you…he is—_

"Shut up!" Rose seethed, shoving the trophy away.

"I didn't say anything." Scorpius said warily from the other side of the room, where he was scrubbing at an award given to NYMPHADORA TONKS LUPIN, dated May 2nd 1998. It was true, neither of them had spoken since Rose suggested in a monotone voice that she start at the beginning of their section and he with the newest.

"I was thinking to myself," Rose admitted. "And I didn't like it."

He nodded, ducking his head as he continued to scrub at his trophy. Scorpius didn't deserve to be in detention, Rose thought abruptly. He hadn't spoken out like she did, but McLaggen didn't seem to like Scorpius at all; after all, hadn't he said something about being ashamed?

"Scorpius?" Rose asked suddenly. He didn't look up.

"Thinking to yourself again?"

"No, I was just wondering, what did McLaggen mean by someone dying of shame?"

His face turned limp and she instantly regretted it; why did she keep asking him such awkward questions?

"My aunt died over the summer. Suicide." He said morosely.

"Scorpius, I'm—" Rose hesitated, what did one say?

"Don't be." He said. "She's had depression since she was our age and it's been getting worse for the last twenty years. It really tore her life apart—she got married, but couldn't live with it; she had kids, but left them when Ashleigh was two."

"That's not it though," Rose continued bravely as she struggled with herself. "Someone else died too."

"He meant my grandfather," Scorpius said quieter. "Grandfather died when I was five. He was a Death Eater and went to Azkaban after the war."

"I'm sorry," Rose said softly.

Scorpius looked past her now, taking in all of the gold and silver accolades surrounding them, most shining back at them, reflecting the blurry faces.

"Your family received a lot of awards, Rose." Scorpius said faintly. "I wish they weren't so damn brave all the time or else we'd be done already."

Despite Scorpius's denial that McLaggen was singling him out and Albus not being in their DADA class, Rose was positive that teacher and adult or not, Cormac McLaggen had no right to make judgments like he did. She needed someone on her side though and that's why she was prowling the grounds for James Potter.

Out of all her cousins, she and James were the most alike, her Mum often said. Stubborn, competitive, passionate…a bad combination to put in the same room together usually as the Weasleys had discovered after the infamous attempt to recreate the _Ginerva Goal_, a move made famous by Holyhead Harpy chaser Ginny Potter. But as much as she hated to admit it, James was usually the one Rose went to when she had a problem or needed an idea unless James _was _the problem.

Elora had told her earlier than James had left the common room after breakfast and headed outside with his broom, so Rose marched towards the Quidditch pitch, expecting to see a black-haired blur soaring by. Gryffindor team wasn't holding practice this morning as various players flew solo; Rose recognized the form of Gawain practicing one-handed flying and Dominique was working with her keeper, but James wasn't out there.

_Where else would he be with his broom?_ Rose puzzled. It wasn't a nice day out; the sky was grey and the ground was brown with mud and dead leaves. The wind was hoarse and icy as she shivered.

Smoke was coming from Hagrid's hut, smoke that wafted towards her and warmed the air by a few degrees. Involuntarily, Rose hurried towards it, eager for some respite when several yards away, James Potter emerged from the shadows cast by the Forbidden Forest.

He carried his broomstick still, as he slunk by, so intent on getting somewhere that he jumped when Rose shouted at him into the wind.

"Where were you?" Rose called out as she jogged towards him. "I've been looking for you all morning!"

"Oh," James said feebly, brushing his fingers through his hair. A few leaves and twigs fell out. "I've been on the pitch, flying."

"No you weren't," Rose corrected him. "I was already over there and you weren't."

"Right," he said quickly. "My ball got away from me and I chased it down aways…but why were you out looking for me, Rosie?" He said eagerly.

Rose fell into step beside him, her long legs keeping stride easily with him. "It's about McLaggen," she said slowly.

"I know it's bollocks that he assigned himself as seeker, Rosie, but he's the captain—"

"Captain?" Rose said in surprise.

"Yeah, Emmett McLaggen. Gryffindor Captain." James said suspiciously.

"I didn't know he had a son."

"Oh, Professor McLaggen?" James said brightly. "He's awesome, isn't he? Played keeper for Gryffindor. And he tells us all about his old job—he was a bounty catcher after the war, you see."

"Awesome?" Rose said blankly as James rattled on.

"So he was kinda like an one-man Auror team—"

"James, stop! He's not awesome," Rose cried out in frustration. "He insulted Scorpius and me, he spent last classes talking about how evil werewolves are—"

James froze and licked his lips nervously. "Eh, Rose, you can't really blame him for hating werewolves. I mean, yeah, _**we**_ know Rolf is cool and Teddy's Dad was great, but—"

"But what, James? What could possibly—" Rose started, enraged.

"Fenrir Greyback killed his father right in front of him," James said solemnly.

"Who?" Rose demanded. James frowned slightly, thinking on it.

"Greyback was a werewolf…one of Voldemort's followers during the second war. Probably one of the most vicious werewolves ever. He killed McLaggen's dad, bit Remus Lupin as a kid, he gave Uncle Bill those scars and he even tried to hand Dad and your parents over to Voldy," he finished ominously.

Rose stood there silently, her mind reeling from all of this. Voldemort. It always led back to him. He killed Uncle George's twin and Teddy's parents and Uncle Harry's family, he made everyone hate Scorpius's family, he started two bloody wars—

_I hate him_, Rose thought bitterly, remembering the terrifying ghost. _He did all of this and he's still doing it. _

James waited kindly for his cousin, letting her wrap arms around his chest and bury herself there. For once, he didn't say a word, no teasing grins or hair pulling or "_Rosie'_s".

When she finally sniffed and pulled away, he smiled crookedly and offered her his arm.

"Shall we find lunch then?"

Rose had just helped herself to another goblet of pumpkin juice when Gawain appeared at her elbow, muddy and visibly pale beneath the muck.

"Just found out," he said miserably, seating himself between her and Melly. "Gryffindor's not playing Slytherin."

The Hufflepuffs nearest to him burst into passioned cries of outrage.

"No!"

"Why not?"

"Who is the bloody tosser who arranged that?"

"I had a bet on it!"

"But the game was in two days!" Rose protested, which Amelia quickly repeated.

"I know," Gawain said grimly. "But we're scheduled to play Slytherin now."

"_**What**_?"

"We're not ready!"

"Only _two_ days?"

"They set us up!" Douglas Whisp fumed. "Slytherin's just trying to wrong-foot us and kick us out of the running early."

"I know," Gawain said again. "Which means we need to practice."

* * *

**I'm about halfway done with the writing and am very pleased with my plot so far. If only my devoted readers might tell me how pleased they are...*dramatic sigh*. I'm desperately greedy and needy, readers. Throw me reviews!**

**Next chapter will my first action-packed Quidditch game so that ought to be exciting!**

**And the answer to last week's trivia is **_**Hermione Puckle, Draco Spinks and Draco Spungens **_**(Surprise! Jo considered both of them before she came up with Malfoy!). This week's question is: 1)**_**What main character did I predict the death of preceding DH? **_**and 2)**_**What is the answer to Scorpius's riddle**_**?**


	9. The Quaffle Quandary

**The Beater and Badger**

Chapter 9: The Quaffle Quandary

* * *

"No, no, NO!" Gawain shouted, abandoning the Bludgers in mid-air to fly towards his Chasers. "Melissa, that's the second time you've dropped that Quaffle!"

Furiously, Rose flew faster after the Bludger_. Just because you stop doesn't mean the balls know it_, she thought savagely. The rest of the team had stopped -even Melly had left the Snitch to listen to Gawain's latest tirade- but all six were in danger of being hit by the two jet-black boulders and Rose was the only one armed to defend her team.

Gritting her teeth, she pulled herself over to a sharp left and went flying fast by Gawain as she heard him start off again, "And Nadia, you honestly are doing better, but you have to be ready! You're flying up to meet them and they go right by you."

Rose would have sighed, but she had to suffice for a grimace, so quick were her targets and unsteady her seat flying one-handedly. Gawain was good at Quidditch, but the Sixth Year tended to be faithless and glum. Quickly, she veered off-course by pulling into a tight loop, just as she heard Gawain shout up at her. "Weasley! I called for a time-out!"

Scrunching her face against the wind and dislike, Rose came down hard on the Bludger, squeezing it hard between her hands. She gently drifted down, clamping down on the straining ball. "The Bludgers don't have time-outs, Gawain," She shot at him pointedly with a significant look towards his Beater's bat. But she said this at precisely the wrong time. There was a reason that there were two Beaters per team. It was because there were two Bludgers.

The second one came whistling out of nowhere from up above. Rose instinctively shot forward, but Amelia wasn't so lucky. The Bludger came and bashed into her shoulder, pummeling her off her broom and ten yards down until she hit the ground with a sickening _crack_.

"We're doomed," Gawain announced as he trudged out of the Hospital Wing. "_Doomed_."

His teammates had perked up slightly at his re-appearance, but deflated almost instantly.

"How's Melly?" Nadia asked. Gawain shook his head and shrugged his shoulders.

"Madam Pomfrey says she broke her arm in three different places. Normally, she'd have that fixed in an instant," He added melancholy again.

"Usually?" Doug Whisp repeated.

"She's out of the potion she'd use for her—too risky to try any spells with that much broken, she said." Gawain said in that stunned, shocked sort of way. "Shipment arrives on Monday."

"But we play tomorrow!" Rose exclaimed.

Gawain stared at her, almost shell-shocked. "And you think I don't realize that?"

"So who's going in for her?" Rose continued. Gawain looked fazed.

"Going in?"

"As the sub. Replacement," she said uncomfortably. He shook his head.

"With the talent pool Hufflepuff's got? We don't have anyone, Weasley. Nobody had any substitutes."

"But," Rose protested, her throat becoming unbearably dry. "We play _tomorrow_."

The hall outside the Hospital Wing became horribly still and Rose felt her cheeks reddening with shame. It was stupid to think that just because she was on the team that Hufflepuff might be different, she told herself. Canceling a match within twenty-four hours of the game was an automatic forfeit by the team, even with Rose Weasley on it.

Gawain shifted. "I'm going to think it all over and I'll let you know after breakfast what I've decided—if we play without Amelia Macmillan or if we're going to forfeit the match," He said glumly, shuffling away as the team filed after him, six heads bowed.

_Quidditch match,_ Rose thought abruptly as she awoke hours later. Then a second later, _m__aybe._ It was all still up in the air, after all.

The Den was somber, the students more dressed in black than yellow. The news had spread quickly in the common room last night, but the rest of the Castle remained blissfully unaware that the cause of their excitement might be canceled. Rose had to drag herself out to the Great Hall, she dreaded facing after breakfast so much.

No one else did, it seemed. Gryffindor and half of Ravenclaw were wearing shades of yellow and black and the Slytherin table booed at the sight of her, except Albus who offered her a thumb's up and a grin she couldn't summon to return. Sidling into her chair, she noticed Nadia hadn't touched her sausages yet and Gawain was scribbling on a inked-out parchment, his eyes bloodshot. Doug and Melissa looked similarly defeated. "Rose!" Elora called out as she bobbled down to the Hufflepuff table, her two braids shaking. "Sit still, you'll need your hair out of the way for today's game and I even got you a yellow ribbon—"

"I don't think there's going to be a game today, Elora." Rose said miserably. Elora frowned sympathetically.

"Nerves?" She suggested, but Rose shook her head.

"Amelia Macmillan broke her arm and Madam Pomfrey can't fix it in time. Gawain thinks we'll have to forfeit," she said morosely. Elora's eyes widened; she leaned down and hugged Rose hard around the shoulders and hurried back to her own table.

From up above, the morning post began sailing in, thousands of owls against the periwinkle sky and grey clouds. A flood of them attacked her table, one particularly familiar one landing on top of her toast. "Thanks Sydney," Rose said glumly, not even offering the family owl a bit of toast. Sydney took the unbitten half off her plate anyways and flew off, leaving the letter behind.

_Dear Rosie,_

_Surprise! We're outside in the stands, ready to watch the game. Your parents can't wait to see their girl fly. Watch out Slytherins, she's got a bat, she's hitting Bludgers, it's the Chudley Cannon's next Beater, ROSE WEASLEY!_

_Love,_

_Mum and Dad_

Rose tried to smile, but it was difficult and probably turned more into a wince. _To think we were so worried about taking Slytherin on_, Rose thought bitterly. _Now we don't even get to try! And Mum and Dad came to see my first game and we forfeit. We lose without even trying—already at the bottom of the team rankings._

"Hufflepuff!" A guy waving a yellow flag said. Rose glanced up at him. Tall, with broad shoulders and an ashen pallor, he came over from the Gryffindor table.

"Wanted to wish you all good-luck," He said genially. "Felt awful about that re-scheduling and now Amelia Macmillan in the Hospital Wing…" He shook his head pitifully.

"Thanks," Gawain said soberly. "But I'm not sure it's needed."

"'Course it is!" He said, almost shocked. "Here, handshakes for extra luck today," He offered, reaching over the breakfast tables and bracing with one hand on the drinks so as not to spill them, he leaned over to shake hands. Only Rose stood up and he vigorously shook it. "Eat a good breakfast, that can help with the nerves," He suggested. "Well, see you on the field!"

He then turned and headed back towards Gryffindor where he sat between Fred and Louis, surrounded by the rest of the Gryffindors.

"Awfully nice of Emmett," Gawain said, shaking his head. "But I don't know how we can go on today." He crumpled up his parchment, slammed down the book and drowned his sorrows in a long gulp of milk. Blinking fast to hide the tears she feared were coming on, Rose copied him and chugged her orange juice fast without breathing. Surprisingly, the juice seemed to settle in her stomach easily. She set her cup down, pushing Gawain's book out of her way. _Quidditch Through the Ages_ by Kennilworthy Whisp. She flipped through it and it opened to page 46: Mentionable Moves.

_**The Ginerva Goal**_

_Made famous by Holyhead Harpy Chaser, Ginerva Weasley Potter, in 2002; the Ginerva Goal consists of the entire team distracting the other players, primarily to keep them out of the way long enough for the Seeker to find the Golden Snitch. The move is named after Ginerva Weasley Potter's replacing the Holyhead Harpy's Seeker due to injury and the Harpies trying to keep the opposing team out of her way until she successfully caught the Snitch. Often used when only the Golden Snitch can end a game in victory quickly._

"Gawain!" Rose practically shouted, upsetting her yellow juice. "We can play; we can still play with the six of us," she babbled, pushing his book back at him. "If we can get the Snitch before Slytherin can score more than 150 points, then we win," she pleaded. The team huddled in closer, passing the book around and murmuring.

"Could work—"

"It's down in the rulebook."

"What do you think, Gawain?" Melissa asked hopefully.

Gawain rubbed his jaw and the light tufts of teenaged growth. "The only problems are that we need seven players to go on that field and one of them a Seeker. I'm too heavy to be quick, and Doug, Nadia and Melissa know each other too well for me to think of switching them up. I can't risk the Slytherins getting past empty hoops if I put Casper in. You'd have to play as Seeker, Weasley. And Rose, you'd have to find the Snitch and _fast_. I wouldn't do it unless you think you can handle itbor know a Hufflepuff who can substitute for us," he cautioned, looking at her intently.

She wasn't ready for this, but she had played Seeker before over the summer. Rose wasn't ready, but she nodded anyways. She could do this, she could _do_ this. "I will. And I know who can player Beater."

The morale of the Hufflepuffs had certainly picked up, Rose thought appreciatively. She could hear the cheering from the changing rooms easily. She was donning her uniform, the first time since she tried it on. The house-elves in the laundry rooms had done it well; the previously big shoulders had shrunk and the rest of it fit perfectly. In fact, the only Hufflepuff who didn't look excited was Duncan Macmillian, who now looked sick as he clutched Rose's bat.

Most nights that she hadn't fallen asleep quickly, Rose had worried secretly about her first game. What if she got nervous, her stomach taken over by butterflies and her throat constricted around her heart? But strangely, no nerves infiltrated her system; Rose's mind was completely focused even without her Beater's bat in hand.

"You ready?" Douglas asked stoically next to her, holding his broomstick aloft. Rose gave a short nod as the seven players strode out on to the field.

The crowd broke out into fresh cheers as soon as Rose spotted the green-clad team approaching simultaneously. Oliver Wood stood squarely in the circle, the game box at his feet and a broom in his hand. "Are both teams ready?" he asked brusquely. Rose caught Gawain's nod and a thin-faced girl on the Slytherin side mimicked him. "I want a fair game today from everyone," Wood warned them as Rose bobbed her head. "All right then, let's shake hands Captains…"

Rose didn't watch Gawain step forward to greet the girl captain, but looked upward at blue skies ahead before they were obscured by the tall towers surrounding the pitch. In one such tower was a huge mass of red-heads surrounded by blondes, two black-haired boys and two brunettes, one sitting next to her Dad and with Hugo in between. Her heart skipped at the sight of her family waving a large WEASLEY IS OUR QUEEN flag, a yellow banner in the breeze.

A sharp blast of the whistle and Rose kicked out as she swung herself on top, the broom soaring upwards as she was surrounded by players in emerald and canary colors.

"And the first match of the season begins! This is Lucy Weasley speaking—"

"And Molly Weasley," Her twin interrupted before Lucy tugged the microphone back.

"-covering today's game, Slytherin versus Hufflepuff! Although many of us were disappointed that the usual Gryffindor versus Slytherin first match was rescheduled, even more of us are surprised to see Hufflepuff play. Down one player in a freak accident during yesterday's practice and replaced by second year Duncan Macmillan today, the odds are against the Badgers," Lucy reported intently.

Rose swerved sideways as a Bludger came pelting after her; her quick move threw the black ball off course into the way of the Slytherin Captain who had captured the Quaffle. Melissa snagged it triumphantly as the two other Slytherin Chasers flew back towards their hoops and Keeper to block her off.

Rose Weasley turned away then, confident in her team's abilities to keep the Quaffle away, a confidence that Lucy didn't share.

"And Melissa Gleason appears to be playing catch back and forth with other Hufflepuff Chaser, Douglas Whisp—"

"Grand-nephew of author of _Quidditch Through the Ages_!" Molly burst out next to her sister, glasses flashing furiously in the sunlight. Rose kept glancing around the pitch for a golden flash that wasn't a pair of glasses as her cousins prattled on. The crowd was half laughing at the sight of the Hufflepuffs playing monkey in the middle and not scoring while the Slytherins shouted for their team to take the Quaffle back. Rose gritted her teeth.

Frustrated, one Slytherin knocked a Bludger at her, which she managed to dodge until she saw Gawain speeding towards her. Rose accelerated then, the wind blowing words into her ears as she left him and the Bludger behind. "A rather unorthodox move putting Rose Weasley as Snitcher, riding a _Cloudboom_—" Lucy noted.

"It's a _Cloudburst_, Lucy," Molly said exasperated. "And the position is called Seeker—"

But Rose lost the rest of it as she flew fast and furiously around the field. She had to spot the Snitch and get there first, but oddly, she wasn't too worried. If anything, she was joyful to be circling the field.

The Hufflepuffs seemed fairly joyous too—Melissa, Doug and Nadia threw the Quaffle round as they flew by every turn of the field, five Slytherins in tow. Casper's eyes darted everywhere for her to search for the Snitch and Gawain hovered over her again, one hand on his bat, to ward off any Slytherins or Bludgers. Duncan, flew away from her, following his instructions from Gawain. Even though he was just a number and not actually defending anyone, Rose could appreciate that Duncan could fly smoothly.

Then the joy turned to triumph as Casper let out a sharp bark-like growl, the cry of a badger. Rose saw Casper's eyes indicate "_down_" and there it was! A glimmer of gold near the ground—she leaned forward and let the broom shoot downward after it. But a flash of green warned her that Zytka Zabini was after her.

Glancing upward, Rose searched for a way to throw the Slytherin Seeker off her, but instead she saw the Bludger hurling back towards her once more. An idea sprung to her lips and she shouted it before she knew it.

"DUNCAN!" Rose screamed. "Bat! Give me your bat!"

For a moment, it seemed futile, but Duncan threw it down and she caught it while slowing out of arm's reach of the snitch. Her blood was pounding too hard for her to hear the crowds but she did hear the mighty _crack_ of the Bludger as she pitched it away and into Zabini.

And then, still clutching Gawain's bat, Rose twisted in her set and leaned out to grasp the fluttering little Snitch.

"ROSE WEASLEY GETS THE SNITCH!" Lucy screamed into the mike. Wood blew the whistle and came up beside Rose before grabbing her fist, punching it into the air. He grinned, nodding like a mad man but she was sure she was grinning just as hugely. "HUFFLEPUFF WINS, 150 TO ZERO!"

The crowd was a wave of cheers and jumping up and down as the rest of the Hufflepuff team came flying towards her. The Slytherins slowed, startled and stunned by the turn of events, having been so caught up in their attempts for the Quaffle as Rose happily flew at her team.

"WE WON!" Gawain shouted gleefully as Doug and Casper pulled Rose and her broom into the shifting, colliding circle of brooms and badgers as they sank towards the earth.

"And did you see the way that Bludger blasted the ground? It left a hole the size of—"

"We know, Ron, we saw the game too," Mum interrupted then, but smiling. Rose beamed, still clutching her broomstick and in uniform. It had been hours since the game had ended as a premature full moon hung in the blue sky, but Dad was still in full flow. At first, Rose had been just as excitable, but then that golden feeling had faded to some satisfaction and she had let him do the talking.

"But 'Mione," Dad said grinning. "Our girl just almost single-handedly won her first Quidditch game playing a different position, using a tactic that has only been successfully done by one other person!"

"It was a fantastic game, sweetheart," Mum said enthusiastically, "but Rose is probably eager to go her party and Hugo's wanted to show us his House."

Rose shifted her broom on her shoulder. "I do want to go celebrate, Dad," she admitted.

"All right," Dad consented. "Let's drop you off at your Common Room then," he said, before launching back into discussion about how fortunate they had been to come up with such a good idea to win the game as Hugo interjected with statistical facts that the game had proven otherwise.

"I mean, the odds of you even pulling off that move are probably a million to one—"

"Three thousand, seven hundred to one, actually," Hugo rattled off. "_Quidditch Daily _says so anyways—"

"And on your first try!" Dad insisted enthused.

Before long, she had led her parents to the large wine rack that was the dead-end to the Hufflepuff and house-elves's hallway. Ignoring her Dad's suggestion they go visit the kitchens, Rose pulled the second-bottom row's sixth bottle out halfway and lifted the eighth bottle on the top row to an upward standing position. The glass bottles all quivered for a moment and the wine rack swung out to admit Hufflepuffs into their Common Room. A burst of noise concealed by the entrance broke out as Rose was pulled into the Den by several Hufflepuffs.

"It's Weasley! Rose Weasley!" One fourth year boy yelled.

"Weasley is our queen!" The Den bellowed back. Rose was hoisted up again as she raised her fist, still clutching the struggling Snitch. From up high, she saw so many faces of elation and pride which cheered again. Across the room, she saw Duncan similar lifted up on top of the crowd before the fourth year boys set her down and she was absorbed into the party.

She was as much as an attraction here as the victor as was the butterbeer and treats either gotten off of the house-elves or snuck in from Hogsmeade. But in this moment, there was only one other person whose admiration she wanted, from one Seeker to another.

"Hullo Cedric!" Rose chimed after she had woven her way over to Cedric Diggory's small, black framed portrait. He smiled down at her winningly.

"How's Hufflepuff's newest Seeker doing?" He asked, grey eyes shining like the light was really touching his oil-painted eyes.

"I'm not Seeker forever," she reminded him. "See, over by the punch table set up, Melly's arm's all healed now. She'll be fine to play in the next practices and I'll go back to being Beater." She said it matter-of-factly, but she couldn't keep the grin off her face.

"I'm really proud of you, Rose," Cedric said gently. "You really showed what it meant to be a badger today." She stared at him, mouth slightly open and he grinned. "You didn't give up. You played hard and fair to win and you encouraged the rest of the team to do the same. You stepped up to do more than you were supposed to, Rose, and made us all heroes for it," he insisted broadly, his handsome face still turned upward. She smiled too.

* * *

**Happy (almost) Halloween! Happy 50ths Birthday to Mrs. Molly Weasley! **

**A long chapter full of Quidditch! Now I understand why Jo cut it out for Year 7. And I've got 5 more years of it! **

**Last chapter's Answer 1 is: **_**Hermione Granger**_** (Yes, I thought she would die! She had a lot of bad things going for her...) and Answer 2 is: **_**water, fire, earth, wind**_**, guessed correctly (but with help, cheater!) by Astrea Severin Orion Black. Today's trivia is: **_**What do you think I have up my sleeve for a plot this year?**_


	10. A Mysterious Meeting

**The Beater and Badger**

Chapter 10: A Mysterious Meeting

* * *

Rose's euphoria lasted until Monday morning, when she and Scorpius found themselves in McLaggen's classroom again.

"Rose," Scorpius whispered, the class milling around them—_her_. She did win Hufflepuff the match after all, not Scorpius. "Rose, promise me you won't do anything rash."

"Rash?" Rose hissed back, scandalized.

"Just keep your mouth shut, no matter what he says or does," Scorpius pleaded. "He might not even be there."

"Why wouldn't he? He's the substitute for Professor Thomas until February or so," Rose asked.

"Lorcan said that his class on Friday was canceled," Scorpius elaborated, but any hope that theirs might also be was quickly killed as McLaggen opened the door.

He looked rougher than he originally had, with bloodshot eyes, but his manner seemed as smooth as oil as the class slid in and he took roll call again. No comments were made this time but the class seemed on edge.

"It has come to my attention, class," McLaggen said as he rolled up the attendance list, "that there are some of us in here who doubt my capabilities as your teacher. So allow me to educate you on why I'm educating you in the first place." His eyes didn't flick towards Rose and Scorpius's seat, but she could feel the bite of his remark.

"I received an O on my N.E.W.T. for this class here as a student. I planned to go into the Ministry immediately after, but when Voldemort took over, I evaded capture from Death Eaters for a year. After the war, I worked as a bounty-hunter, capturing Dark creatures of all kinds as well as Death Eaters. Once the Ministry was back on its feet, I was offered a job with the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures. Because of my experience with the dark arts, I accepted being your Professor's replacement for the time being. And I hope that will be enough to satisfy you," He finished shortly. "Now, as I promised, we will be discussing a certain werewolf today. Fenrir Greyback."

The class shivered simultaneously. McLaggen's frown turned grimmer. "History knows little of his past, but I made it a study of mine. He was concieved during the midst of World War II to a German peasant woman. His father was also a werewolf and he gave the gene to his son. Greyback later boasted that he ripped himself from the womb and his first milk was his mother's blood."

The rest of McLaggen's history lesson was only more deranged and maddening. Stories of children being bitten as revenge and pregnant mothers in hopes of passing along the gene. Packs formed during the last two Wizarding Wars under Voldemort's command. Muggles and muggleborns handed over to Greyback for consumption. Witnesses to the murders of ministry officals slaughtered. Greyback was set loose on the students of Hogwarts during the Battle. And throughout it all, McLaggen never stopped gripping the back of his chair, his face bloodless and his bruises more apparent than ever.

The blustery month of November continued similarly. Heightened by their win, the Hufflepuffs threw themselves whole-heartedly into practice, especially after Melly re-joined them. But Rose saw the other teams working just as hard, scarlet and blue and green blurring against the greying skies.

The ceiling of the Great Hall reflected winter's coming with stark branches and cloudless but grey skies. The grass was coated in brown, curling leaves that she had to crunch through to get to Herbology and the Quidditch pitch, but there was no sign of snow yet.

Inside the castle, torches burned daily to spread warmth among the stone walls of Hogwarts. The Den remained cozy like rabbits in their burrow and the savory meals cooked by the House-Elves not only filled their bellies, but the ovens warmed the Den through the walls. The older students chattered a great deal about getting out of the castle and seeing Hogsmeade while the second and first years talked about the coming Christmas holidays. Albus had casually mentioned that she and her family were spending Christmas at Grimmauld Place and the Scamanders had been invited to share Christmas dinner with them. Grandma and Granddad were in Romania visiting Uncle Charlie for Christmas, but would be back for a New Year's Party at the Burrow. Letters from home came with Sydney, Mum slyly suggesting if Rose would rather read this book or that one and Dad asking right out what Rosie was thinking of for her birthday. All in all, Rose Weasley had plenty of reasons to hurry November along and be eager for December.

However, Quidditch matches were not one reason to skip past November. Despite the frigid temperature, Rose was bundled in a Weasley sweater and coat as she sat out in the stands for the game.

"Hello again! Lucy Weasley here—" Then Lucy sighed and announced, "And Molly Weasley- Here reporting live the Ravenclaw versus Gryffindor game! It's what we've been waiting for folks! The replay of last year's Quidditch cup match when Seeker and Captain, Dominique Weasley pulled a fast one on her fellow cousins and Gryffindor Quafflers and Catcher Fred, Louis, James and Roxanne, by stealing the Snitch in the first five minutes before they could rack up any goals."

"She means Chasers and the Keeper," Molly interjected.

"Anyways, we're here to see if Dominique can pull off the same move again, if she'll resort to new tricks or if the Gryffindors have a surprise in store to reclaim their title."

Rose twisted her old pair of Omnioculars and focused in on the Gryffindor team. Emmett McLaggen looked a bit bruised and had an old wound on his arm, presumably from a rough practice, but he and the rest of the team looked ready as they all kicked off the ground. Red and blue flew skyward, circling each other as the four balls zoomed upward and the whistle was blown.

"And the game begins! Louis gets the Quaffle first and he flies towards the goal with Weasley and Potter by his side. Ouch! Ravenclaw Seeker, Dominique Weasley, gets nailed in her stomach by a Bludger from Malena Martinez, exchange student from Iracema Universidade de Feitiçaria in Brazil—LOUIS SCORES!"

The rest of the game continued on like the first ten minutes had. Gryffindor would score, Gryffindor would beat the Bludgers at Dominique over and over again until Gryffindor got the Snitch. By the end of the game, Dominique had a bloody nose and her right side was covered in bruises. Sympathy pains wracked Rose as she tried very hard not to think about how close she had come from being walloped by Gryffindor.

The second of December was a Tuesday with a sleet-slicked sky. But the bad weather did nothing as Rose came beaming to the Hufflepuff table, shocking anyone who had sat next to her at breakfast as Rose's usual morning mood of a troll crossed with a basilisk was rather well-renown after a year and a half at Hogwarts. But once the Granger-Weasley owl, followed by an entire flock bearing gifts, swooped down, it became apparent that today was Rose Weasley's thirteenth birthday.

Rose cheerfully pulled the packages off the owls, petting some of the more familiar ones; Sydney, Aunt Ginny's owl Holly, old and fluttery Pigwidgeon. By the time breakfast had been finished off and Albus, Elora and Scorpius had joined her, Rose had opened a pair of Beater's gloves from Dad, made of Swedish Short-Snout scales which were colored a pretty silverish-blue that reminded her of Aunt Fleur. She, on the other hand, had thought more fancy than practical and given her niece a sleek black case which Rose was embarrassed to open in front of Albus and Scorpius because it contained makeup. Mum had thought to get her a bag of Sugar Quills and a book, _Don't Beat Around_by Cyprian Youdle. There was a Cannons jersey, a small wood carving of a badger Lorcan had handed her, a blue topaz jewelry set from Uncle Percy and Aunt Audrey. Rose smiled at all the gifts, but the jewelry and make-up worried her a bit. Did her family expect her to turn girly now that she was thirteen? Rose loved playing Quidditch and running around in jeans, a T-shirt and sneakers and she couldn't imagine herself looking like Victoire and Dominique did even without them wearing any makeup or her managing a pair of high heels like her mum did to work everyday. Did that happen naturally when you became a teenager?

Her worries proved unfounded though as the rest of her birthday went smoothly. No sudden hormones popped up when Professor Jigger paired her up with Aaron Boot instead of Scorpius to make a Confusing Concoction, even when his hand jolted hers by accident. No red spots had popped up on her face to mix with her freckles when she hurried into the loo before lunch. Nothing made her any different looking from yesterday in the least.

At dinner, a small yellow frosted cupcake found its way on to her plate when the desserts appeared. The black lettering HAPPY BIRTHDAY ROSE made it evident that the house-elves were trying to make her birthday very happy indeed.

"Happy Birthday Rose!" She heard Hugo pipe up as he hurried over from the Ravenclaw table, holding a package out to her.

"Thanks Hugo!" Rose said delightedly, pulling off the brown packaging to find a small gold object the size and color of a Snitch, but looked more like a diamond.

"It's a Sneakoscope!" Hugo boated proudly. "They reveal anyone untrustworthy—I asked Lorcan to get it for me in Hogsmeade at Dervish and Banges because I knew you'd like it."

Rose studied the Sneakoscope a bit closer before grinning. Wouldn't hurt to know how trusting she should be around James, or McLaggen for that matter. "Thanks Hughie," she said wickedly, smothering him in a hug that he resignedly accepted before scuttling off.

"Come on, Weasley, you may be another year older but I expect you out there with the rest of us for practice," Gawain yelled over his shoulder then as she grinned a bit wider. Quidditch practice on her birthday, what could be better? she wondered as she stuffed the Sneakoscope in her robes and hurried after him and the rest of the team.

Gawain, as hopeless and despondent as he tended to be, had been renewed by their win and insisted on practicing for three hours and allowed Duncan to come watch all thier practices now, even relenting enough to allow them a mock game of offense vs. defense in honor of her birthday and victory.

"Weasley!" Gawain shouted excitedly, pointing at the two Chasers speeding towards Casper. "Knock Melissa and Nadia off!"

She nodded and with a terrific smack, the Bludger went whistling fast enough to force Nadia to slow and pull up as the Bludger made impact with Melissa.

"Good one!" Casper hollered as Doug flew towards Rose.

"Gawain!" Doug yelled. "It's getting dark! Don't the second years have an earlier curfew than the rest of us?" Gawain checked his watch and blanched.

"Sorry, Rose!" Gawain apologized. "You've just missed curfew. You'll have to sneak in now before anyone catches you out here with us."

"How do I sneak in and not be caught inside?" Rose asked indignantly. Gawain pointed at the entrance to the locker rooms.

"Secret side door on the right was put in after the Battle of Hogwarts. Draw a square around the blackened stone and it'll open. Should let you out by the Hospital wing."

"Thanks!" she called after him as he flew off to dodge a Bludger. She started sprinting for the entrance.

It was twenty minutes past her curfew when Rose snuck through the stone corridors. Every breath sounded heavier, her feet sounded louder than a Bludger meeting her bat and her heart thudded as she crept out of the passageway and into the castle. Apparently it wasn't so much of a secret, judging by the amount of dirt, leaves, twigs and footprints she had followed.

Suddenly, a high-pitched whistle shrilly squeaked and her pocket began to glow. Digging into her pocket, she pulled out her new Sneakoscope.

Rose grabbed the scarf from around her neck, winding it around the Sneakoscope, muffling the noise and light before shoving it back into her pocket. It was faint now, like the sound of a whisper and she was startled to hear a voice.

"I don't understand why you had to rearrange the Quidditch matches on my behalf!" A sharp voice said suddenly and nearby.

A growl answered. "And you want your secret revealed? You have so much going for you!"

"I know, I know." The first voice said distantly. "But I hate forcing the other teams into disadvantages to suit my needs."

"But your team needs you too," the growlier one said severely. "You're lucky I could fix the dates like that—if it had been for any other reason—"

There was a pause and Rose swore that they had heard her heart after all.

"Thank you, then."

"You're welcome." She heard their footsteps then as Rose backed up and felt something behind her, solid and warm unlike the stones; she opened her mouth and made out an "Ahp—m!" before a hand clapped over her mouth and eyes.

"Shut up, Rosie." A strangely high-pitched voice whispered behind her. She dug into her pocket for the Sneakoscope but it was still now. Some of the footsteps, instead of growing louder or softer, were then cut off abruptly and a door shut. The other grew closer until she was convinced they were standing right in front of her and they stopped.

"Rose Weasley using our passage, Goblin!" The voice hissed, mildly surprised. "How did the ickle second year find it? Not on her own."

"Could have been spying on us, Gremlin. Maybe Changeling told her. Or maybe she _was_ tricky enough to find it on her own," a new voice suggested.

_Goblin? Gremling, Changeling? Who were they? _Rose opened her eyes and from what she could see, the hand held over her face was definately human.

"Rose? Nah. She's smart, but cunning she isn't. I'd be more worried about the snake than her when it comes down to it. But she might not be working alone either." Gremlin said quickly, the voice shifting into a lower tone. Rose felt her face heat up.

"What do you propose we do to the big birthday girl then?" Goblin asked, it's voice growing squeakier by the word.

"Who else is lurking around?" Gremlin replied, the voice shifting into a lower tone unnaturally.

"All's clear now," a new voice answered. Or maybe it had finished adjusting?

"I suppose we could be nice to the birthday girl and get her to the Hufflepuff Common Room," the one she thought was Gremlin decided. "After all, she's being such a bad girl and we wouldn't want her to get a detention. What a blemish that would be on her permanent record!"

"She's on Peeves's good side too. She could throw in a good word on our side."

"She can't see us though," Someone said doubtfully.

"Right then!" Gremlin said cheerfully. "Rose Weasley, we will escort you safely back to your House on the conditions that you don't mention meeting us to anyone, do not try to see our identities and you tell Peeves about our awesomeness. Agreed?" Rose tried to make a noise against his clapped hand when he realized her dilemma. "Just shake or nod." He suggested and she nodded fast.

"Which route for us to Hufflepuff?" one asked.

The other was silent for a moment and then said in a booming voice "We'll take the left and head down towards the Great Hall that way, McLaggen is patrolling the right way still."

It was silent, with the other booming voice occasionally changing their direction or whispering a hiding place for a few minutes as Rose dizzily was marched around, unable to see the way or directions as Gremlin carefully held her still. They were very careful not to reveal anything to her.

The scent of food and sudden warmth alerted her to their surroundings before they did.

"We're here," somebody said. "And ideas on how to make our getaway now?"

"I hate to do this," Gremlin said slowly, "But unless you have a better idea, we might have to stun her." Rose's eyes widened despite her blindness and began to struggle against him.

"Wait, I've got a better plan," Another said quickly. "Bye, Rose. Hope you have a happy birthday."

"Throw in a good word for us to Peeves!" A second voice added mirthfully.

"Three, two, one!" One said delightedly but there was no flash of spell lights or any hexes spelled. Instead, she was pushed forward, her gag and blind released as Gremlin let go of her. She heard footsteps running but she still couldn't see. She was in a cloud of darkness and for a moment, she wondered if they had blinded her.

But then the smoke faded and Rose was left alone by the Hufflepuff entrance with no trace of anyone else.

* * *

**Da, DA DA DUN! And out of the mist, my plot appears! *cackling and thunder*. **

**I hope this chapter will have you all speculating! That is my plan after all, to get more reviews. Throw you off the cling-hangings so you'll review asking if your theory or suspect is correct and I'll make you all wait until the very last chapter. Unless I'm nice that does happen occasionally. :) I hope most of you got past the disturbances over Greyback's past. If Bellatrix was a madwoman, than I think Greyback was even worse. **

**As my chapter questions don't seem to be very popular and I'm out of ideas right now, I suppose I won't be asking any today. So, please review!**


	11. Grandparents Granger

**The Beater and Badger**

Chapter 11: Grandparents Granger

* * *

Rose dragged herself to breakfast, plopping down next to Lysander. He was immersed in the morning mail—the latest edition of the _Quibbler_. It was flipped sideways as he read it eagerly, not even noticing as Babbitty the rabbit ate off his plate and as a slender barn owl hooted indignantly while perched on his goblet.

"Good morning Rose," He said, goldfish eyes peeking over the top. She muttered something vague and slumped into her seat. Yesterday had been the exhausting Ravenclaw versus Slytherin match. It managed to last almost five hours and during it all, Rose had screamed herself hoarse by the time the banners fell limp. Lucy and Molly had resorted to talking about the weather for it began to finally snow three hours into the game.

And since her birthday, she had taken to staying awake at night as she puzzled over the mysterious midnight meeting she had witnessed. Someone had fixed the Quidditch games? And who was the ones who had caught her coming back from practice?

It was quite possible that she fell back asleep even amidst the chatter and sunlight of the Great Hall because the next thing she was aware of was the barn owl screeching and bursting into flight, knocking Lysander's goblet of pumpkin juice into her face. As Rose gasped and blubbed in shock, wiping at her face with a napkin stained orange, Lysander's twin from the Ravenclaw table crossed over to them, the barn owl perched on his elbow. Lorcan was likewise carrying an edition of the _Quibbler_ sideways as he approached.

"Lysander, I think this was supposed to be opened," Lorcan Scamander said, blinking slowly behind green-tinted glasses and holding out a letter. His brother rolled the paper up and inserted it into the barn owl's mouth before accepting the letter. Rose watched this comical display of normalcy for the twins, Lysander shaking his head full of tiny braids as he read.

Finally, he looked up, looking much more interested than before. "Oh, that was a bit expected though, wasn't it, Lorcan?" he asked.

Lorcan shrugged as he took the _Quibbler_ from the owl's beak and handed it back. "I suppose so, although I wonder about how magic is shared between two bodies like that, for such a period of time. Would it deplete the energy or would it gradually grow and could magic be revealed at such an early stage?" He questioned edgily as he slinked back towards Ravenclaw.

"What is he saying?" Rose asked bewildered. Lysander beamed.

"He's wondering about the effect pregnancy would have on magic—would the mother and child both being magical increase the mother's power or would it diminish from the amount of dependence…" Lysander explained happily as he slathered his toast in jam.

"But why?" Rose asked again.

"Because Luna is pregnant of course," he said obliviously before unrolling the Quibbler and reaching out for his goblet.

"**_Pregnant?_**" Rose gasped. "Luna and Rolf?"

But Lysander only looked surprised at her. "Well, yes. They were pregnant to have me and Lorcan. I know you are supposed to be married first, but they are now and they wanted another baby while we were in South America," He said compliantly.

"There's a huge age difference between you though." Rose said.

"No, Lorcan's older by four minutes," Lysander said absent-mindedly.

"I mean that you and Lorcan are thirteen years older than this baby," Rose corrected herself. Lysander nodded.

"We'll actually be fourteen, Rose. Our birthdays are in May and the baby's due in early July," He said lightly.

"Class!" Neville said good-naturedly like always. "I know we're all excited but we've got to get through this lesson first." The Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs groaned. "Oh, cheer up. I gave you the end of term exam last time so we wouldn't have this complaining." He said amusedly. "Besides," He said airily, "I thought you might enjoy some _stories_."

He had said the magic word as the heads all lifted, suddenly alert.

"About Dumbledore's Army, Professor?" Duncan asked interestedly. Neville shook his head.

"No, not today…" he said, musing. The class groaned again and a few complaints shot out.

"It's not fair…"

"My uncle tells me war stories all the time!" Edith claimed behind Rose.

"My sister says that you told her class about when you killed Voldemort's snake—"

"Children!" Neville blustered, holding up a hand as the class quieted. "Those are stories that I was even too young to be part of at seventeen." He sternly admonished. "They sound heroic and brave, but really, we were all scared and only doing them so another student wouldn't have to. But I do have a deal for you all," He said, softening his voice and adding in a wink as the class leaned forward eagerly. "Next year, you will be third years. Come third year, Professor Thomas and I offer you a chance to join the DA."

There was a sharp intake of breath. "Dumbledore's Army?" Rose asked.

"Half-correct, Miss Weasley. We did call Dumbledore's Army the DA, but our group only shares the initials. We are known as the Defense Association." Neville explained kindly. "We do tell old stories from time to time, but mainly, we teach and help you learn how to defend yourself safely. I believe Professor Thomas offers it as extra-credit for her class. But that's a year away still for you lot, unfortunately," he said as the class groaned again, having been so caught up. "But I don't suppose you wouldn't want to hear about the Chamber of Secrets?" They all quieted and Elora shot Rose a wide, delighted grin as Neville began. "It was right after the Halloween feast…"

The bell rung from far away, jolting them all back to the greenhouse.

"And _that's_ why we study Herbology, class." Neville said proudly. "Have a Happy Christmas and I'll be seeing you next year!" He called out as the students grabbed their bags and ran out into the path they had trampled out of the snow back to the castle. Neville chuckled as Elora and Rose hurried up to his worktable. "Hello Elora and Rosie," He said fondly as his daughter hugged him. "Excited for the holidays yet?" As always, the Longbottoms looked very much alike when next to each other: blonde-brown hair, hazel eyes and rosy cheeks.

"Definitely," Rose said in a flash. "We're going over for Christmas dinner at Uncle Harry and Aunt Ginny's and they invited the Scamanders too." Neville nodded.

"We have a small number of guests this year for Christmas, but it will still be plenty busy around the Cauldron," He said jovially. "But Hannah always pulls together a feast for us and the guests and my grandmother."

"I'd better finish packing then," Rose said a bit reluctantly. "See you on Christmas!"

She walked back to the castle, shivering in her robes and wool as she wished she was in the warm greenhouses, following the path trampled out for her back to the Entrance Hall. All around her, the snow was white and higher than her mid-calf, except for the path and the footprints where someone had veered from the way back to the front steps of Hagrid's Hut and then back around.

"Rose!" Hugo shouted as he came running into her compartment. "I've found them! We're waiting for you." He added impatiently.

"I'm coming, Hugo." She said as she floated her trunk carefully off the rack above. "And you didn't see that or else you will see a bat-bogey hex," she quickly countered.

Quick on his feet as always, he muttered, "Er, right, Rose," before hurrying off again.

"Ready to go face the lions, Rose?" Albus teased, carefully wrapping a Slytherin scarf around his neck.

"Ready or not, here we come," she answered cheerfully.

As she and Albus made their way off the train, they were able to pick out the crowd of mostly redheads that made up the Weasley families picking up their children.

"Dominique_, ma fille_!" Aunt Fleur exclaimed as beside her, Lucy and Molly were discussing their grades with their father.

"I do think that an E in Herbology is understandable, especially considering all my other grades," Lucy encouraged.

"Rosie! Al!" Their parents called out to them; James, Hugo and Lily already there.

"Dad, Mum!" Rose said exuberantly. But she broke it off to shout after a family of blondes. "Scorpius!" She called out, as the boy and his parents turned around. "Have a nice holiday!" She shouted as Albus chipped in similar greetings too. Scorpius waved back before his parents led his away into the crowd.

"All right kids," Dad said as he rubbed his jaw. "Pile in, throw your trunks in the back, this is just a short trip."

Rose raised her eyebrow, arching it primly. "We live four hours away!"

"We are going to go and see my parents first," Mum said plainly. "It's almost Christmas and they don't get to see you unless it's summertime, so I thought we should drop in and see them on our way."

Nana and Grandpa Granger lived in Oxford, in a Victorian style house that was ringed by roses in the summer. It was the same house that Mum had grown up in and despite its age, had been well up-kept by Grandpa. They were retired dentists, both having gone grey-haired by the time Rose had been born, but for being rational and straightforward Muggles, they accepted their daughter and grandchildren as magical and loved them, if sometimes apprehensively.

The old house was standing still, its lilac paint muted by snow, but the inside of the house behind Nana was alive and cheery with early Christmas cheer.

"Oh, Hermione!" She exclaimed, reaching out towards her daughter as the family was bustled inside. "Ron, Rose, Hugo!"

Rose took a single step inside the house and was immediately engulfed in warmth as she hugged. Then Nana took a step back, releasing her and called out over her shoulder, "Richard! Richard, Hermione, Ron and the children are here!" before sweeping Hugo into her arms.

Grandpa stumbled out of the bathroom, a copy of _The_ _London Times_ tucked under his arm as his wry face broke out into a grin.

"You don't say!" He said in his tenor tones. "Helen, release that boy, I need his advice on a word—67 across, a five lettered word for a musical play. And Ronald, help yourself to the telly, I think there's a footie game on. Wildflower! I don't remember your mother being so tall at that age," he said, kissing Rose's cheek, as he let Hugo lay the paper out of the kitchen table. "Hermione, my dear, I don't suppose you've seen that article in the paper…"

"Tea, anyone?" Nana called out over him. "I know you prefer that ghastly American drink, Hermione dear, but it stains your teeth."

"Mum, I'll drink your tea over coffee any day," she said, accepting a mug. "Just not in the mornings."

"I'll have some too, Nana," Rose said as she bounded over.

Nana filled her a cup too. "How old are you now dear? I only have two grandchildren, but the two of you grow up so fast! Ronald, why must your family live so far away and have the children at boarding school too?"

Dad rolled his eyes, but grinned. It was a long-asked question with an even longer-asked answer. "Helen, we're wizards. We can Apparate, use a Portkey, and if you'd let me install the Floo network..."

Nana huffed. "Not again! The first time we had it, a drunken wizard fell through!"

"That firewhiskey is mighty good though," Grandpa said absently. "Ronald, did you bring any with you?"

Before Nana could berate Grandpa or Dad mention they had brought a bottle, Rose piped up. "I'm thirteen now, Nana. My birthday was the second of December."

Nana clapped a hand to her forehead. "How could I forget! Your birthday present, it's a very special one, Rose. Richard, where did you hide it now?"

Grandpa scratched his head. "Eh, Helen, you know how my memory's going...But don't worry Wildflower, we'll send it up with the Christmas presents."

"Grandpa, eight across is Toto, Dorothy's dog." Hugo said, erasing an answer.

This was why she loved her family, Rose thought as Nana bustled to brew more cups of tea. And not just the Weasley, Wizarding side alone either. She loved how they accepted each other unconditionally despite their Hogwarts Houses, grades, flaws, Quidditch teams, magic or no magic. It warmed her as much as Nana's rose-hip teas did.

Rose ran up the slippery steps and threw the front door open. "We're home!" She shouted to the empty home, her family coming up the steps behind her. With sharp barks, the clicking of nails against the hardwood floors greeted Rose as Cannon and Sabre came running, wagging their two tails each. Moving out of the doorway, she happily got on her knees to scratch their ears. "Hullo boys," Rose said cheerfully. "Did you miss me?"

"Almost as much as we have," Dad said as he tugged her luggage through the door. "It's a good thing we kept each other company while our kids were away at school."

With a final pull, Mum and Hugo got his trunk through the door with a gasp. "Rose, take your trunk upstairs now and get settled in. It's late and nobody's had any dinner yet," she said, as Rose dusted off her pants and grabbed the trunk off the floor.

It took a mighty effort, even with all those hours of beating Bludgers, to get her trunk up the stairs. _And to think how effortless it would have been to use __**Wingardium Leviosa**__!_ She thought grudgingly as she kicked open her door. Lifting her head up, Rose managed to drop her trunk on her foot as she let go by surprise.

Gone were the walls of pink and white, her baby wallpaper that lasted through childhood. Instead, the walls were bright blue, with white clouds drifting by lazily. Her carpet had turned sunny yellow and were it not for the furniture lying innocently neat, Rose might have thought she was floating.

Pushing the trunk off her toes, Rose ran downstairs, thundering two steps at a time before she dashed back into the kitchen. She made it barely quick enough to see her parents drop their knowing smirks and resort to placid ignorance.

"Did you put your things away yet, Rose?" Mum asked blandly. "You'll have plenty of time for it before dinner's ready. "

"Mum!" Rose exclaimed. "You remodeled my room!"

"You really didn't think that we'd leave you with your nursery forever?" Dad asked amused from the stove. "Besides, my little Rosie's a teenager now. You might as well have a nice room to stay locked up in away from those teenage boys."

"Daaaad," she whined, turning pink. Why was twelve okay for hanging out with boys, but not thirteen?

"Do you like it, Rose?" Mum asked, dropping all pretenses now. Rose smiled.

"I love it!" She said happily.

"Good!" Mum replied, turning back to the dishes. "Now go put your things away in your new room."

"OW!" Hugo hollered from upstairs as an ominous thunk sounded through the floor. "WHO PUT THAT TRUNK THERE?" Mum smiled as Rose coughed.

"I suggest you start with your trunk then," Mum suggested dryly.

* * *

**Happy birthday Rose Weasley! According to my assigned birthdate for her, today would be her 4th birthday. :)**

**Just a nice, happy little chapter today after the plot twisting the last one that at least 70 people read but only 1 reviewed...*cough* Santa's not the only one watching you, you know!**


	12. Goodnight Moon

**The Beater and Badger**

Chapter 12: Goodnight Moon

* * *

"Rose…Rose…" a voice was whispering in her ear.

"Go way," she mumbled, burrowing herself further into her blankets. "Dark out."

"Rosie, it's Christmas!" Mum said, holding back a laugh as Rose bolted upright.

"Christmas!" She exclaimed, hopping out of bed and scrambling for her bathrobe. "Jimminy, what time is it, Mum?"

"Quarter to eight," Mum said promptly. "Hugo woke up about fifteen minutes ago and your father and I have been up since dawn waiting for our children to wake us until we remember they are a teenager and almost a teenager now."

"Muuum!" She squawked as Mum smiled, kissing her forehead.

"Daddy's getting breakfast cooked and he's got the tea on," Mum offered helpfully.

"Couldn't I try coffee instead?" Rose asked hopefully, as she tied her sash around her. Mum had picked up drinking coffee from a two week trip to the States once and Rose loved the smell of it emitting from her mug.

"I suppose so," Mum said, offering Rose the mug. "Slowly, it's hot."

Eagerly, Rose lifted it to her lips and sipped at it. It tasted odd and a bit soft-tasting. Frowning, Rose slurped at it before she gasped. It was _bitter_ and horribly hot, so her tongue was both burned and bad-tasting.

Mum laughed, correctly reading her grimace as Rose shoved it back. "Perhaps tea will get you awake to open presents," she suggested.

The tea was better, at least drinkable when Rose carefully sipped at it to protect her burned tongue. Dad had started in on cooking Christmas breakfast. It was in the oven while they started on the presents.

Hugo unwrapped a guide to winning Gobstones to complement his previously given Gobstones set while Rose found her Weasley sweater, her second yellow one with red cuffs. Before she was Sorted, Grandma had always knitted hers red like a rose. And all the Weasleys were assigned a color for Grandma to keep track of making throughout the year.

"Maroon sweater number 38," Dad said dryly as he unwrapped his Weasley sweater.

"Is that the last of the presents?" Mum asked conspiratorially as she levitated wrapping paper towards the garbage.

"Is it?" Rose asked hopefully as Hugo said rhetorically beside her, "Yes."

Her parents exchanged glances and Dad got to his feet. "I should check on the food." He said lazily before disappearing into the kitchen. Resigned to the fact that Mum wouldn't crack under pressure and so there was nothing to do but wait until Dad came back, Rose surveyed her gifts.

A pair of Holyhead Harpy robes from Quality Quidditch Supplies emblazoned with Aunt Ginny's name, position and number on the back. A biography of Helga Hufflepuff from Mum; a subscription to _Witchy Women_ from Aunt Audrey, probably because Lucy and Molly subscribed to it; her Weasley sweater and Sugar Quills; an invention from Lysander that he called the Bludger Blower that threw Bludgers at her to hit for practicing.

Her check-off was disturbed by the sound of the crups barking up an excitable storm and they came dashing as Dad herded them in. Cannon and Sabre came wagging their tails, but a third, black spotted one jumped at Rose.

"Gah!" She gasped as she unsuccessfully held the darkest spotted one back from licking her. "Who is this?"

"Happy Christmas kids," Dad said cheerfully. "Meet Snuffles!"

"Snuffles?" She asked blankly before the pup turned to lick at her ear. "You named the crup Snuffles?"

Suddenly, it was like a vacuum turned on and Snuffles was sucking and snuffling in her ear and her brain made the connections. "So, this is Snuffles, and he's ours?" Rose asked slowly. Her parents nodded and Hugo beamed as Sabre begged to be petted by her brother and Cannon barked happily.

The rest of the day was a busy blur as her parents explained how Uncle Harry and Aunt Ginny had kept the crup at their house and Uncle Harry discovered Snuffles's tendency to snuffle. His joyful demeanor also reminded him of another dog named Padfoot, although Rose didn't see any connection between Padfoot and Snuffles. By three o'clock, they had had their brunch, dragged their presents to their rooms in clumps until appropriate places were found for them, leashed the crups, and dressed and smartened themselves up as they stood outside the doorstep of Number 12 Potter Place, originally known as Grimmauld Place.

Aunt Ginny greeted them at the door, also wearing her Weasley sweater as all the Weasleys did today. The Granger-Weasley bunch was outfitted in maroon, lilac, yellow with a bit of red and bronze as they held Snuffles, Cannon and Sabre back in their excitement. Uncle Harry and Aunt Ginny had invited the crups too.

"Hello! Happy Christmas. How early did the kids wake you up?" Rose heard as she was ushered in the narrow, brightly-lit hallway and the crups eagerly bounded past into the house. Someone took her coat away to lie out on the stairs as she looked upward.

Albus was leaning over the banister above them and waved down at her. Once free of her family, Rose skipped up the stairs to meet him. Like her, Al was wrapped in his Weasley sweater, emerald green with silver to differentiate between his father in the jade and gold sweater as Uncle Harry passed them to reach the commotion below.

"What's the schedule this year?" Rose asked as soon as Uncle Harry was out of earshot.

"Teddy and Granna Anna are already here, the Scamanders arrive at four-thirty, we eat at six, and I think the Scamanders will stay for awhile after." Albus rattled off as they took in the mayhem below, increased by Uncle Harry and Lily skipping down from her room a landing above them.

"Perfect," Rose declared as they hurried on up the stairs to Albus's bedroom. It was high-ceilinged, with an old-fashioned feeling still in place. But it was obviously given some care by Aunt Ginny and Albus with olive green wallpaper with copperish carpeting, a four poster bed and tall bookcases that reached the ceiling. His green walls were plastered with drawings she recognized as Lily's, some pictures of family and friends, herself in most of them besides Al and his desk was scattered with notes. And true to form, there was an immaculate chess set all in place, the ivory and ebony pieces gleaming, as they knew what Rose versus Albus meant, save the one piece missing from the board.

Rose turned to her cousin, who was rolling the black knight through his fingers. "White goes first," she corrected him as they settled down on the carpet.

They were quiet, formulating battle strategies in their heads with a few "F5…Knight to A7," until Albus looked up, his green eyes glinting strangely as he spoke carefully.

"So, what do you think of Professor McLaggen?"

Rose's throat almost closed then. In the last two months of lessons, she had come out on an emotional rollercoaster. He had taught them everything he knew, relying more on personal experience then text, which she liked learning that way. But he seemed so opinionated about everything; not that he was crude, but it made him seem dangerous so that she didn't want to cross him by voicing her own thoughts. Even when his ideas were of how evil things could never change and he used the prime examples of werewolves and death eaters to exemplify his point, mentioning the names Lucius Malfoy, Bellatrix Lestrange, Fenrir Greyback, Ernest Scabior and Draco Malfoy repeatedly as Scorpius sat still beside her, quill twitching as he copied notes. If his fingers hadn't been turning as pink as Elora's cheeks, she would have never guessed Scorpius to be disturbed.

She cleared her throat and looking down so he couldn't see her face. "I think he knows what he's doing, but I don't think he knows why," she finally answered.

"He talks a lot about his work as a bounty hunter," Albus continued, watching her intently. "He mentions names and memories a lot in my class. James told me that you were worried over what he was saying in front of Scorpius."

She looked up then in surprise. "Did he—?"

"James told me about McLaggen's dad, yeah." Albus admitted. "But even knowing that doesn't make my House feel any better. A lot of them have relatives who never recovered after the war even if they weren't Death Eaters and being blamed for their family's mistakes is a slap in the face for them." Rose nodded.

From downstairs, she heard the door open and like they were at home, all three crups went running, barking excitedly all the way. "Sounds like someone's here," Rose commented, abandoning her white rook as Albus started, agreeably putting his black pieces back in the box. A few grumbles could be heard from the pieces as they were forcibly removed from the chessboard, the game abandoned to join the others downstairs, Rose skipping three steps at a time. "I'll get it!" She shouted exuberantly now, racing for the door as the crups were at her heels. Delightedly, she flung the door open, stepping back to let the Scamanders in.

Unlike the Weasleys and Potters in their Christmas sweaters, they were dressed, all of them, in starched white robes over their regular wear; Luna's showed a slight stretching over her belly. Lorcan and Lysander entered, holding aloft a basket full of shaggy and sparkling red scarves, Luna sweeping in after them.

Snuffles sniffed and began to growl, almost menacingly, Cannon beside him barking more incessantly and higher pitched than before. Sabre, the scaredy-cat he was, merely whimpered and retreated as Rose lunged for the other two's collars.

"What's wrong, boys?" She asked worriedly. "Are those scarves bothering them? Because I know bulls are attracted to red and that's why they charge—"

"I doubt it's the scarves," Rolf said as he came through the doorway and Rose had to yank the crups away now, dragging them towards the kitchen downstairs. "The scarves only repel nargles like mistletoe attracts. And bulls only charge because the scarf is waving, they are color-blind like myself" He knelt on one knee, clapping one hand over Cannon's muzzle. "Allow me," he insisted as Rose reluctantly released her grip on his collar.

Cannon leapt forward, trying to lunge, but Rolf held a firm hold, shaking his pale white-blonde shaggy head. "I suspect they are extra-sensitive tonight to my lycanthropy because of the full moon," He surmised calmly. "Most animals I find are. An intelligent creature like a crup realizes the danger I pose to their family. They can't detect the difference between a wild werewolf and one taking precautions, of course." Rolf added.

"I'll take them down to the kitchens then," Rose gasped for the effort of holding Snuffles.

"I can hold this one for you," Rolf offered. "Luna, I suppose—"

Luna smiled radiantly, her humming stopping abruptly. "Oh, certainly. Come, boys, let's protect Ginny and Harry's house from any nargle infestations before we join them for dinner."

As Rose and Rolf lugged the two crups down and she whistled to calm Sabre into following, she realized what he had mentioned so off-handily.

"The full moon is tonight?" She asked, trying to keep the nervousness out of her voice.

"Unfortunately," Rolf Scamander admitted. "For me, it's a double-edged sword; it helps so much in my work to have an animal's senses, but it effects me monthly as well…I do think I'm a bit better off than most however, even in today's society. Things used to be a lot worse for werewolves—my parents chose to have me home-schooled so I wouldn't feel the whole brunt of it, but live and let live! Your mother and our ministers have done quite a lot to help and it's almost a blessing to be one at times." Rolf rambled as they shut the kitchen door behind them. "Especially when I know people who will prepare rare steak for dinner," He added as they joined the table.

The dining room had been redecorated by Lily's Christmas garlands and now with Luna's red scarves draped everywhere. It was filled to the limit with Granna Anna and Teddy, Weasleys, Scamanders and the Potters crowding around one long dining table. Rose sidled into her seat next to Albus and Hugo as Rolf took a seat on the end, laying a hand on Luna's belly gently as he sat down next to her.

"So, Lysander, Lorcan, do you like Hogwarts as much as that Brazilian school you went to?" Uncle Harry asked as he poured them all Butterbeer.

"It is much different in South America." Lorcan suggested. "But at Hogwarts, there are more choices. Icarema expects that it will guide you into making the right desicions but here...it's more independent and liberal."

"I wish that one of the children will consider doing an exchange trip thier sixth year. No more excuses about friends and boyfriends and Quidditch." Mum huffed. "Dominique speaks French so well that she wouldn't have need a Babbling Bauble to translate for her."

"Neville's daughter went to Beauxbatons last year." Aunt Ginny said, taking a helping of potatoes. "Angela's the Head Girl this year too. She's a Hufflepuff, Rose?"

"Yes." Rose managed after swallowing.

"How's your second year going, Rose?" Aunt Ginny followed up. "I hear from Albus every so often about how he's enjoying his classes. Any favorite classes you like, Rose?"

"Well, I liked DADA until Professor Thomas left."

Mum and Dad turned strangely grim as Aunt Ginny continued to smile. "Lavender? Dean told me that they had another girl. Whose the substitute?"

Rose tried to shrug it off, remembering what James had told her. "Cormac McLaggen."

If Dad had looked nervous before, then Mum was flabberghasted. "McLaggen? That's what he's doing now?"

"When have you been knowing McLaggen, Hermione?" Dad said, sounding wounded.

Mum flushed terribly. "He used to work at the Ministry and I'd use him as a source for S. P. E. W. and the department..."

"Cormac?" Luna said vaguely, looking up from where she was dribbling gravy in circles. "Oh yes. We talked quite a bit with him, didn't we, Rolf?"

Rolf nodded, clearing his throat. "His son would be about seventeen now? I don't think we've seen them since the wife was pregnant."

"Speaking of that, it's so wonderful to hear you are expecting again!" Mum commented graciously. "When are you due, Luna?"

Smiling dreamily, Luna's mouth widened and said, "June or July…the baby will be a cancer, the crab."

"Things will be a little different this time around then, eh, Rolf?" Dad interjected as he helped himself to the potatoes.

"Different?" Rolf echoed. "I should hope not. Luna had such an easy pregnancy last time that she was out in the field with me up until almost eight months and even until the day of, she was being active. Of course, this time, we are staying in England to compile our studies on the oozlum species, so we won't be running around so much."

Granna Anna nodded gravely. "Every pregnancy is different though. I thought I knew how my pregnancy would go with Nymphadora—until my fingernails turned inexplicable green and my hair bright pink to mismatch. And that's to say nothing of the colors she turned when she was expecting Edward here," she concluded, indicating Teddy Lupin across from her and a few places down from Rose, his hair white and gold to match Luna.

"Will you find out the baby's gender?" Mum asked.

Rose absolutely hated it when people asked that question. What happened if you did find out early on and was disappointed? Or the Healers were wrong? Why can't people just be grateful for what they got? Of course, she might just feel this way because she was told by Grandma that her parents had argued over her gender so much that the entire family had a bet going on until Mum found out, went ballistic and told them all the next day that the Healers confirmed that Rose Nymphadora Weasley was indeed a girl.

"Oh no!" Luna insisted, sounding suddenly troubled. "Children are gifts and if I handed you your Christmas gift nine months early, would you unwrap it to take a peek, even if it meant you still couldn't have it until Christmas? No, we don't go to any Healers."

Whatever thoughtfully impressed look on Mum's face, if slightly doubtful that any human could hold out nine months with a present in hand (Rose couldn't have), now she looked simply appalled. "No Healers? Not even a check-up? How will you give birth if you don't go to St. Mungo's, a mid-wife?"

"The natural way," Luna replied, as if this should have been the obvious answer. "That reminds me, Rolf. We'll need to pick up some crystals, find a toadstool ring and lots of salt for the birth if we want to do this naturally."

A few feet down from Rose, James could be heard grimacing, trying not to let the subject disrupt his stomach.

"Is there something you'd like to say, James?" Aunt Ginny asked her oldest son, an amused gaze directed at him.

"Just pass the butter, please?" He said weakly.

As soon as they had all finished off the Christmas dinner and the hodgepodge of dessert dishes in which not a piece of Granna Anna's peanut butter fudge was left, mostly thanks to James who had eaten six, the sky outside was a cloudy shade of blue, the city of London outside was black with white snow topping it.

"I should be going back then," Rolf said dispassionately. "Luna, will you be staying?"

"For a while longer, yes," Luna responded lightly. "Lorcan and Lysander, baby and I will be home after the moon's come up. Good night, Wolf."

He smiled and kissed her as most of the room looked away to allow some privacy. "Good night, Moon." He replied before saying his good-byes and leaving the door clicked shut behind.

"Why did you call him Wolf and he call you Moon, Aunt Looney?" Lily asked, perceptive as always. Aunt Ginny hissed not to be rude, but Luna answered it anyways,

"It's what we say when he leaves for the full moon night. Like that little Muggle book. Because he doesn't get to see me or a Moon and I don't get to see him or the Wolf."

"What Muggle book?" Lily asked again curiously as they followed James and Hugo past the kitchen door towards the stairs. Rose was behind them and she kicked at the door when she heard one of the crups start baying, effectively shutting them up.

"It starts with _In the great green room_…"

"_And goodnight to the old lady whispering 'hush'_," Luna continued serenely, rubbing her belly all the while. "_Goodnight stars,_" She recited to Lily, who patiently listened, having eagerly volunteered herself as Aunt Loony's practice for her new baby whom Lily was absolutely convinced was a girl.

"Aunt Loony's going to have a girl and she'll be like my baby sister, just like I'm Teddy's," she had confided in Albus and Rose and Lysander and Lorcan at dinner.

"Are you quite sure you're feeling all right, Luna?" Granna Anna asked again, her sharp, dark eyes picking up Luna's persistent rubbing. Luna blinked and nodded, beaming proudly at her stomach protruding slightly.

"None of my babies have been this active before," She admitted calmly. "And certainly not this one." Then she stared dreamily out the window, at the full moon rising and casting a silver shadow into the Drawing Room. "I do wish Rolf was here tonight," she said wistfully.

Lorcan patted his mother's hand. "It's ok, Luna. Rolf's been doing this for ages and he took his dose. He'll be fine tonight and he'll come and see us tomorrow morning." He said reassuringly.

"Of course," Aunt Ginny said warmly. "It's all routine for him now, Luna, but in the meantime, it's time for one little girl's bed."

Lily groaned, wriggled and protested but her mother wouldn't hear of it and within a few moments, they were upstairs in her room. Teddy grinned after her, kicking up his feet despite his grandmother's dignified eye roll. Rose knew she should probably be getting ready herself or else she'd never hear the end of it from Lily, sharing the same room and all, but she wasn't tired yet either despite how high the moon was as the light slid over Luna. In the moonlight, she looked like an ethereal goddess in gleaming silver.

Luna, however, was a tired goddess as she gave a yawn. "I know it's silly—" she began and then she gasped, eyes like the full moon outside as she blinked rapidly, her chest heaving before she collapsed, her jeans and white robes becoming slowly soaked with blood.

* * *

**And I'm back! Although I'm a little over halfway to the final chapter being uploaded, I've actually written myself close to the end, so expect more chapters soon! And for those readers who can't wait, I have a Christmas collection of oneshots being uploaded daily currently too.**

**This was a rather dramatic ending, don't you think? **


	13. Party with the Prewetts

**The Beater and Badger**

Chapter 13: Party with the Prewetts

* * *

Rose hadn't meant to fall asleep, but somehow when she blinked again the sun was shining through the window and someone had draped a blanket over her on the couch. She sat up, rubbing at her eyes, the nightmarish scene from last night still playing out…

"_What's wrong with her?" Rose had cried out. Quicker than Rose had ever thought of her, Granna Anna was down and feeling at Luna's stomach for the baby or to find the source of the bleeding. Teddy stumbled upright and went running, shouting and banging all the way, about help and Luna. Lorcan had grabbed her shoulders and Lysander took her wrist while Albus leapt up and joined Rose in staring, mouths open. Aunt Ginny had thundered down the stairs, James and Lily both leaning over the banister outside their rooms as Uncle Harry and her parents came running from the kitchen. _

"_**Expecto Patronum**__!" Uncle Harry had yelled, a silver stag erupting from his wand and bounding out the window into the darkness. Mum hadn't been so calm though._

"_Merlin, the baby!" She had whispered hoarsely. "Is she—?"_

"_Don't say it, Hermione." Aunt Ginny said sharper than Rose had ever heard her. "We thought all hope was lost with Albus, but St. Mungo's helped him pull through. We need to try to staunch the bleeding best we can until they get her, we can't risk moving her." With a sudden surprise, Rose remembered that Albus, who was actually seven weeks older than her but was always smaller than Rose, was premature at birth, coming almost __**too**__ early. It seemed impossible to imagine Aunt Ginny struggling and bleeding the way Luna was now._

_A banging on the door echoed and Dad ran for the door; within seconds he was running back with several Healers on his tail._

"_She was complaining of the baby being really active earlier," Aunt Ginny said quickly. "But then she just collapsed and she started bleeding—"_

_Instantly, the Healers were down with Luna, wands out and poking at her still form, hazy lights glowing and strange words being murmured before one's head jerked up._

"_Do you have anything to be made into a Portkey?" He asked urgently. "It's too dangerous to Apparate and I don't want to risk moving her too much to Floo."_

_Mum nodded and her wand was out and waving at Luna's butterbeer cork chain until it glowed bright blue. "Hold on," she said as the Healers all grasped it; the blue light spread over them and they vanished, leaving the bloodstains on the emerald colored Drawing Room carpet._

Albus gave a sudden, snort-like noise and then he settled back into sleep in the armchair next to her, but it was enough to drag her out of the nightmare. Trying to focus on other things, Rose glanced around the room, her lips quirking up slightly at the sight of them all. Lorcan had passed out on the floor and Lysander was curled up on the couch with her, his head on her ankle. Despite the fact she couldn't feel anything but a sharp prickling sensation in her foot, Rose felt quite content to stay put.

Then Teddy appeared in the doorway, his hair dull auburn today and he smiled wearily at her. "Wotcher, Rosie," He said quietly, not trying to disturb the others. "How are you?"

"How's Luna?" She asked immediately and felt relieved when his smile didn't fade.

"She's going to be ok," Teddy answered. "There were some complications with the baby, but St. Mungo's managed to take care of them both. Your Mum and Dad left about an hour ago to go and see her and they left me here in case anyone woke up so they wouldn't starve. So, pancakes?" Rose followed Teddy downstairs into the kitchen as he expertly began to manage the stovetop. She watched from her seat at the table. "So, what have you been up to, Rosie?" He asked her, his hair flipping to the precise color of the batter. "Tackled any basilisks lately?"

Rose had to snort but she smiled too. "Second year's been ok so far. I'm on the Quidditch team—a beater!" She had to add in proudly. "Hufflepuff won its first match 150-0 and I played Seeker as a substitute."

"Wicked!" Teddy threw in admiringly.

"Did your mum play Quidditch?" Rose asked curiously. Cedric's last chat with her had her wondering about whom else had made Hufflepuff a hero and Teddy's mother, Tonks, was the only other Hufflepuff hero she knew of.

"Nope." Teddy dismissed cheerfully. "Too damn clumsy—oh shit!" He cursed sharply as he knocked the batter on the floor, dripping out of the bowl. "I suppose it's still good according to the five second rule," He said doubtfully as he poured it back into the bowl with a wave of his wand. "Anyways, no, Mum wasn't, but Granna Anna's side had a few…I think Sirius might have played for Gryffindor, Regulus was a Seeker I know and so was Draco Malfoy…"

"Malfoy?" Rose repeated.

"Yeah, Draco Malfoy was my Mum's cousin. Their mothers were sisters, though Granna Anna doesn't talk to her."

"Scorpius is one of my friends!" Rose said suddenly, feeling a bit uneasy. Was she on the verge of receiving more unwanted information?

"Scorpius Malfoy?" Teddy asked, his face changing to the features of a Malfoy with pale blonde hair, silver-grey eyes and a pointed chin, but too old to be Scorpius. Rose fidgeted uncomfortably. "I didn't think your parents would have let you."

"He's in _Ravenclaw_," Rose informed him, a bit snottily. "And I'm perfectly entitled to make my own friends, even if they're in _Slytherin_ like _Albus_." She threw out.

"Ravenclaw?" Teddy said absently, rubbing his chin with the dripping spatula. "No kidding…Granna Anna would like that."

By the time Rose was finishing off her third pancake and James, the late-riser of them all, ate his fourth, Mum, Dad, Uncle Harry and Aunt Ginny came through the kitchen door.

"Dad!" Rose shouted, dropping her fork. "Mum!"

Both of them smiled, pale-faced with exhaustion, but looking happy. "Good morning everyone," Mum said.

"How's Luna?" Lorcan asked quickly.

"Does Rolf know yet?" Lysander followed up almost immediately.

Uncle Harry glanced at his watch and then at Aunt Ginny. "Well, I suppose you can ask them that when visiting hours open in half an hour."

It was absolute pandemonium in those thirty minutes of them all running up and down stairs into one another's bedroom for those pair of shoes they left in Albus's room or the latest edition of the _Quibbler_ that Rose found under her unused cot in Lily's room but it was a cheerful, thrilled pandemonium. But finally, the five adults (if you included Teddy, that is) managed to get all seven children out the door with shoes and coats, all of them wearing their new Weasley sweaters against the frigid December sleet as they walked through the streets to St. Mungo's.

Not many people were out in the streets of London, Rose realized. Because they were all at St. Mungo's. Having been too busy to visit their loved ones on Christmas, she suspected, they came now out of guilt. Or, so many people got drunk on eggnog and firewhiskey and did stupid things that resulted in their hospitalization.

A blonde witch with red lipstick and a copy of _Witch Weekly_ was at the front desk when their party finally made it past a wizard with Splattergroit and a pair of triplets that had been so thoroughly jinxed that they resembled slugs more than each other.

"We're here to see Luna Scamander," Mum said confidently. The witch scowled, chewing frantically on her bubblegum.

"That's first floor, creature-induced injuries…can't anyone here read?" she demanded, pointing to the sign on the left of her desk.

_ARTIFACT ACCIDENTS………………………………….………..…Ground Floor_

_CREATURE INDUCED INJURIES……………………………………First Floor_

_MAGICAL BUGS……………………………………………………Second Floor_

_POTION AND PLANT POISONING………………………………Third Floor_

_SPELL DAMAGE……………………………………………………Fourth Floor_

_VISITORS' TEAROOM AND HOSPITAL SHOP…………………Fifth Floor_

"I learned how to forty years ago, but no one else has apparently." The witch snapped, popping her gum bubble before shouting "NEXT!"

They were quickly hurried away as the trio of triplets stepped up and started speaking in tandem; Uncle Harry and Aunt Ginny, Mum and Dad led them to the first floor.

They passed Healers in lime-green robes, sulfurous yellow gas wafting out of doorways, bubbles full of candles floating above their heads in every hallway until they reached a double-doored ward reading "DANGEROUS" DAI LLEYELLYN WARD: SERIOUS BITES. Uncle Harry pushed open both doors, Aunt Ginny and Dad ushering all of them in as Mum counted the various red, blonde and black heads off.

It was like one big hospital room with a row of gurney beds. Only a few were occupied: one girl that looked Hogwarts age who hastily pretended be asleep, a young man about Teddy's age who was missing a chunk of his arm up to his shoulder and at the far end was a woman with hair the color of dead weeds humming lazily to herself as a rugged man with white blonde hair rubbed her belly.

"Aunt Loony!" Lily called out, tugging Aunt Ginny's hand along. The others picked up her cry similarly.

"Rolf! Luna!"

"You're ok!"

"Luna, I was so worried…"

"What happened?"

Luna merely smiled and shifted herself slowly to let Lily sit cross-legged on the bed with her as they gathered around her bedside.

"Hello, hello, hello!" She exclaimed. "I'm very sorry to end Christmas like that, but the baby had a little Christmas surprise for me." She said, adding her hand to Rolf's gentle petting.

"Is the baby all right, Mother?" Lorcan asked, his voice sounding raw.

"Lorcan, you're old enough to call me Luna," Luna said pleasantly. "Besides, I'll be hearing enough of 'Mama' in a year from now." They all visibly relaxed to know that there was still an occupant inside the bump on her stomach.

"What's the surprise, Aunt Loony?" Lily asked impatiently. Luna smiled brightly.

"The baby's a werepup!" She said proudly. "Since Lorcan and Lysander didn't get the gene from Rolf, I didn't even think of getting it this time around, but apparently the baby had. So, once the moon came up, the baby quite naturally reacted and I didn't take any Wolfsbane to temper it—"

"The baby's a _**werewolf**_**?"** Rose burst out loudly. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the grown-ups exchange looks.

Rose spent the holidays at home with Hugo and the crups after Boxing Day. She mainly confined herself to her new room as Hugo was apt to spend most of his time reading. And then Dad would come home before dinner and Mum right after while the table was being set. Albus sent her letters by Archimedes, passing along the news that the twins had gone home, Luna was released from the hospital but put on bed-rest. But otherwise, she didn't see anyone until Grandmum and Granddad came back from Romania in time for their New Year's Party.

Uncharacteristically, the Granger-Weasleys arrived an hour or so early; to make time for Grandmum and Aunt Audrey swarming them with hugs and then for Dad to follow her into the kitchen from where Lucy and Molly were arguing and Mum to explain to Granddad the function of his 'sell-phony' with Uncle Percy examining the device, Hugo bounding after them and Rose left alone for once in the Burrow.

After a moment's silence and a minute's hesitation, Rose began making her way to the top, where she and Al made their sanctuary. The Muggle combination lock held while they had been at school and it took only a few twists to slump open. There, Rose flopped on the bed, curling her knees to her chest and hugging them there.

Luna was pregnant with a _werewolf_. Her skin crawled, as if being scratched by tiny claws as she shivered then.

Rose hadn't known Rolf until she was almost six years old when one day, Luna had shown up, husband in tow and ring on her finger. Luna had diverged all the details to Mum and Dad that day—how they had met, a whirlwind romance, the twins, their long-distance relationship, and then, deciding to get married. It was when the grown-ups were talking about how they had prepared to start their lives together, did Luna mention one, crucial fact about her new husband.

"_Oh, I wanted to get married on Ostara, the Vernal Equinox, but the full moon was then and with Rolf's lycanthropy—"_

"_What's lycanthropy?" asked a childish Rose. She hadn't liked adults using strange, longish words to confuse her. So, she had promptly always asked for a definition to defeat their purpose. But this time, Mummy and Daddy had exchanged more than a simple quick glance and it was Luna, the one grown-up in Rose's life who never tried to hide anything from the children, who answered breezily._

"_Rolf is a werewolf, Rose-Red," Luna said affectionately using an old nickname. "So, we were married on May Day instead and it was rainy and such a lovely day."_

_Rose hadn't been able to comprehend werewolf yet, but she did grasp the strange mismatch of rainy and lovely. "How was it lovely and raining at the same time?"_

"_Because the sun was shining too," Luna had answered wistfully again. _

Now Rose was seven years older and, like McLaggen said in their first class, she'd never seen the danger of a werewolf. Luna had been _dying_ and that was from a pup, toothless, but able to scratch and scar with tiny fingernails. But what if it had managed to rip Luna apart?

A low thud made her head jerk up as a balding, red-haired man's head banged downward. He muttered something as he ducked under the doorway before straightening up.

"Mind if I join you?" Uncle Percy asked formally. Rose shrugged and didn't move as he sat on the bedspread next to her.

"You know, there is more than one way to be blind," he said cryptically as Rose raised her eyebrow, wrinkling her nose. "There's legally blind, of course, but there's the kind that we can see, the kind that should be illegal."

_Merlin, no. Not definitions from Uncle Percy!_

Uncle Percy frowned at her slightly over his owlish eyeglasses. "I'm speaking of course, of prejudice and injustice."

_Worse. A lecture on depravity like Mum does._

"I'm guilty of it." He said shortly, stopping Rose's internal prayers. "I ignored what was right and good to keep my life the way I wanted it, even if it was according to yellow journalists like that Rita Skeeter and Pansy Selwyn. I let Muggleborns, Squibs and what other people might call 'monsters' have their lives and freedom taken away. I was never as strong as you are, Rose," Uncle Percy confessed.

Rose was silent, feeling confusion swirling in her like mist. "But why—"

"My Gryffindor pride made me ask forgiveness before I could fight," Uncle Percy continued hurriedly, not letting her attempt to ask. "You're a Hufflepuff, despite it all."

Perhaps seeing the confusion and fierceness on her face, he added on, "What I meant is, being a Hufflepuff means that you will be the one to stop the prejudices and injustices from happening so there's no need to fight to end them." Uncle Percy finished quietly. Rose started then, dropping her knees to the bed and stared at him uncertainly as he patted her knee. "Just saying, Rose. You know, I'm no good at these sort of talks. Why Hermione asked me to..." he said, suddenly absent-mindedly as footsteps echoed up the stairwell.

A pale-faced, familiar redhead appeared in the doorway. She looked close to Lily's age but certainly younger with a stuck-out bottom lip being chewed on.

"Rose, may I introduce Mathilde? Mathilde's family was invited to the party tonight and so the guests must be arriving now. Mathilde, you are ten?" Uncle Percy said precisely.

Mathilde beamed, but shook her head regretfully. "I'm just turned nine," She said anxiously. "My birthday's in September."

"Nine is a good age to be," He said good-naturedly as he led them both downstairs. "Soon, you'll be going off to Hogwarts too!"

Now she frowned, looking immediately mournful. "I haven't done any magic yet."

"Some people are late bloomers," Rose objected. "Professor Longbottom says he was sixteen before he started getting good at it."

Mathilde brightened again and Rose had to smile at the younger girl as they tripped down the steps. She looked familiar, but Rose was quite sure she hadn't seen Mathilde before.

"Mum and Dad brought us here to meet everyone now that we're family again," Mathilde said cheerfully. "And Aunt Muriel was so excited to meet—"

"Aunt Muriel?" Rose cried out, alarmed as she jumped the last landing down and hurried into the living room.

In Granddad's chair was the old bat herself; hair re-dyed and faded so it was permanently pink, wrinkles, and a beaky nose graced the face of Great-Great Aunt Muriel Prewett; gossiping away eagerly to Mathilde's elder sister, Rose now realized, was Mafalda Prewett.

"Which one of Molly's grandchildren are you?" Muriel barked like a poodle.

Rose tried not to flinch. "I'm Rose," she said slowly. "Ron and Hermione's daughter, Auntie Muriel." Muriel snapped her fingers now delightedly.

"Rory or that Resa Weasley that was in Hufflepuff! I see that Muggleborn's genes got to the Prewett bloodline…" She added regretfully as she shook her head. Rose bit on her tongue as Muriel perked back up. "Course, it all always boils back down to blood. The Prewetts have had their fair share in Slytherin and I have a great-granddaughter, the last of the Prewetts and a Slytherin to boot! Plus, Ginerva's son is also in Slytherin according to the Prophet; no doubt it's because of the Prewett genes through my great-niece as Potter's never seemed as sharp as Gryffindor's sword to me."

* * *

**Ok, so Luna's not dead! Sorry for the scare...**

**I hope all of my readers had a very Merry Christmas! Mine was very much so, with some rather interesting presents. Now, the best present I could get right now would be some great reviews, hint-hint. And if you enjoy **_**Badgering Others**_**, I have a Christmas-themed, next generation collection of oneshots being uploaded daily that you could also read, called **_**The 12 Tales of Christmas**_**.**


	14. Rita Skeeter's Scoop

**The Beater and Badger**

Chapter 14: Rita Skeeter's Scoop

* * *

Mafalda was unpleasant and conniving, Aunt Muriel was a miserable bat. It was really no wonder that the two of them were related, Rose realized after sitting through three of Aunt Muriel's monologues. The actual wonder of it was that Mathilde and Mr. and Mrs. Prewett were related to anyone else here.

As Uncle George burst in with Fred, Roxy and Aunt Angelina in tow, they were trumpeting on kazoos that belched and farted. True to form, the kazoos were orange with a triple WWW insignia and Uncle George's ear was upside down. "Freddie, my boy, was the true inspiration to this one," he proclaimed proudly to the Prewett's shocked faces. "Almost an entire semester detention-free with James and Louis too but he has done some fantastic working testing the prototypes for the shops. Kazoos! What will muggles think of next?" He quipped.

There was a moment of silence and then Mathilde piped up. 'Mum, why doesn't my kazoo from Jenny's birthday party do that?"

"It's _magic_," Mafalda answered back, a tad snootily.

"Your kazoo doesn't?" Uncle George said with an airiness. "Then I'd suppose that you wouldn't say no to a WWW prototype Kalamity Kazoo?" He swooped down and handed Mathilde his kazoo and then pulled another two out of his bag and passed them to Mafalda and Rose. "Be sure to have them on with you at midnight!"

Within the hour, all the Weasleys had arrived except Teddy and Victoire and after half an hour of farts and belches erupting from the toys, Grandmum had berated Uncle George and banned them to outdoors only. But despite the banning of the latest WWW product, the New Year's Party was exuberant. Albus, Hugo and Lily had started playing a board game with her, but Rose lost in the first round. Aunt Ginny had put on some old tune by the Weird Sisters and had the grown-ups dancing. Dad and Mum were probably the worst, doing some move that when it was stiff and awkward, reminded her of a chicken. Grandmum and Granddad took the cake though as they swung and dipped circles around their children. Rose watched for awhile the spectacle, but then decided to get some of Grandmum's pudding in the kitchen while there was still some left.

As the door swung behind her, it blocked out some of the noise as the tune changed to _Expelliarmious!_'s number 2 hit: _Boys and Girls Who Died_. She could the noise outside that indicated that James, Fred, Louis and Roxanne were still busy playing tag with their kazoos, but they were far enough away so that she could hear the argument behind the pantry door.

"Barb, please!" Mr. Prewett begged behind the pantry door, suddenly sounding weary and lost. "I'm only trying to think of what's best for our family…"

"Sending Mafalda to a boarding school, Orville? Leaving her with a family she's never known for a month? She'd much rather talk to that old witch than her mother now!"

Orville paused, and then said quietly. "I was keeping her from feeling like an outcast, Barbara." Mrs. Prewett was silent now, but Rose could imagine the harsh stare that she was giving behind the pantry door. "Sally and Felicity were all lies that Mafalda made up for us. It's because they're witches, Barbara—they can't relate to their peers any better than I could."

Another pause and then Mrs. Prewett spoke again evenly. "So why are we here, Orville, brown-nosing that old hag?"

There was a short bark of laughter. "Because, Barbara, I don't want to be forgotten again."

Their voices dropped, whispering and with a flinch, Rose darted out of the kitchen, pudding forgotten.

Hours later, the farts and burps were going off outside where Uncle George had set them to coincide with midnight. Mr. and Mrs. Prewett had returned a few minutes after Rose had, Aunt Audrey quickly striking up a friendly conversation with Mrs. Prewett. Most of the adults had finally stopped sneaking each other kisses when Teddy and Victoire came through the door having finally arrived, grinning sheepishly and radiant.

Teddy leaned down close to Rose's ear and whispered in it. "Don't suppose you would know how to tell everyone that we are engaged, do you?"

"You're _engaged_?" She echoed loudly as several heads popped up.

"Engaged?" The players announced.

"_Who's_ engaged?" The adults followed up with.

Teddy winked at her and held Victoire's hand, as she slowly raised her left, glinting with a white gold ring.

If the Burrow had been chaos before, it was pandemonium now as Grandmum Molly and Aunt Fleur burst into tears on cue; Granna Anna and Granddad beaming. Uncle Harry and the aunts swarmed the new fiancees as the Weasley brothers started shaking hands and whispering behind the very pale Uncle Bill's back while Rose snuck around to her Dad. "Put me down for ten galleons that Uncle Bill passes out as soon as Teddy calls him 'Dad'," she added her wager to the bets.

The next morning, Rose wriggled out of the old orange bed, Albus no longer still curled up on the spare bed shoved in. It had been too late for any of the mothers to think about dragging everyone home to bed, so Grandmum set the Burrow up with beds, blankets and pillows and some spare cots everywhere. She and Albus were also sharing with Lily, Hugo and Roxanne this year as the Prewetts were all sharing the bedroom on the third floor. The three of them were asleep on the mattress shoved in on the floor between the beds last night but since then, the four of them had woken up and left her behind, presumably to play a snowball fight. But even the sunlight and the loss of their comforting sleeping breaths or the open door hadn't woken her. It was the small shuffling sound coming from the foot of the bed.

Jerking upright, Rose blearily rubbed her eyes until she focused on Mafalda riffling through her knapsack on the floor.

Thankful that she had kept the wand next to her bed, Rose pointed it at her before she could realize Rose was awake. "I'm warning you," she practically snarled as Mafalda jumped and looked up then. "Drop my things or I'll hex—" She broke off as she took in Mafalda's face and realized that this girl was too young to be the Slytherin.

"Matilde," Rose said a little nicer now that she recognized her. "What are you doing?"

Matilde Prewett sniffed a little, dark eyes wide. "I'm sorry." She said in a small voice. "Mafalda wanted me to find something and she said it was in your bag."

Rose was forced to notice the contriteness and she lowered the wand. "Looking for what?"

"She said that you might have a diary," Matilde said softly. "She said if I let her read it then she'd let me read her _History of Magic_ book."

"My diary!" Rose squeaked, turning red. "I don't even have one! Besides, she has no right to read it and even if she did, why would anyone want to read _A History of Magic_ for?"

"I want to know about the Wizarding World!" Mathilde exclaimed. "Mafalda won't tell me anything about Harry Potter—was he at the party last night too?—who she says is really famous and only because he framed someone else, unless I give her something first, she says. And I've never meet wizards before. How did the man turn his ear upside-down last night? Can you do that?"

"Upside down—oh." Rose said as she become more awake. "That was Uncle George and he doesn't have a real ear, just a hole. That ear was just a fake he wears sometimes and occasionally upside down."

"Oh," Mathilde sounded disappointed.

"But what's this about Uncle Harry?" She demanded suspiciously, curiosity peaked.

"I don't know," Mathilde admitted, her eyes growing wide. "But he's your uncle? Is he really the Dark Lord's son and he got mad at his father so he killed—"

"No!" Rose interrupted with a shout. "No, whatever Mafalda said is a lie. Uncle Harry is the bravest person I know and he has never killed anyone, not even a Death Eater."

"That's not what Mafalda's book said," Mathilde said a small voice.

"Book?" Rose asked aghast as Mathilde nodded once. "Tell you what," Rose suggested. "You can borrow my history book if you can give me Mafalda's book to read. That sound fair?" Mathilde nodded and scampered down the stairs then, proudly clutching Rose's rarely-read copy to her chest as Rose slumped backwards in bed.

If she had intended to sleep before, there was no chance now as her head spun with Mathilde's wild theories until her footsteps joined the barrage of noise.

"Here it is," Mathilde said, dropping the book on the bed. "Will you get it back to her? She doesn't know I took it," she added desperately. Rose nodded wearily. "Thanks Rose!" Mathilde called out as she bounded down the stairs again.

It wasn't until Rose was on the train did she dare open her bag and pull out the book. She had manage to hide it inside her makeup case and thinking ahead in case Mafalda went looking in there too or walked into their train compartment, charmed the cover to look like one of Hugo's muggle novels.

"You're reading _The Wonderful Wizard of Oz_? That's a muggle book! One of Hugo's?" Albus guessed when she pulled it out. Rose glanced down, reading the title for the first time. She had picked it because it looked suitably childish enough so Mafalda might snub it, with a scarecrow, a man made of metal, a lion on two legs and a girl in a ridiculous dress with pigtails.

She shrugged, not willing to commit to an answer as she burrowed herself into the corner to read. Luckily, Elora distracted them from Rose's reading muggle storybooks by asking what was Oz and who was the wizard of it, launching Albus into discussion as he tried to remember what Hugo had told them about it before, claiming it to be one of his favorites.

"Oz in the name of a country that's over the rainbow—"

"Over the rainbow?" Elora repeated. "That's absurd! What are muggles thinking?"

Ignoring them, Rose turned the pages to chapter one and skipping the introduction, noting the book title: _Harry Potter, the Boy Who Lied. _

_**Until Halloween night of 1981, Harry James Potter was an ordinary child—in hiding. Yes, Harry Potter had been hiding under a Fidelious Charm with his parents, James and Lily Potter, until it was broken and the Dark Lord, referred to here as "You-Know-Who", went after the family. **_

_**James was killed instantly, and Lily Potter, standing between her son and You-Know-Who, was offered a chance to live, one she did not take. It was later stated by Harry Potter himself that Death Eater Severus Snape (for more on Severus Snape, see my other work, **__Severus Snape: Saint or Scoundrel__**) had previously asked that Lily Potter be spared. But why would a Death Eater ask that a muggleborn witch like the pretty and talented Lily Potter was, to be spared?**_

_**Only now is the reasoning revealed. Connected by statements made and recorded by Harry Potter, it is now discovered that Harry Potter, may have not been a Potter at all! Before marrying James Potter, Lily Evans was in fact, linked to Severus Snape since their first year despite their blood and houses. But as Harry (possibly not) Potter has also said, Snape loved Lily!**_

"_**Because he loved her nearly all his life, from the time they were children. You should have realized, he asked you to spare her life." Harry quotes. **_

_**So, Lily Potter, the woman who spared her life for her son and has been since painted as a Madonna of the Wizarding world, may not be as saintly as she seems. If she was, in fact, dallying with Severus Snape despite her ambitious marriage into the pureblood family of Potter, then who's to say who Harry's father may be? Both men had black hair, as does Harry, but his true identifying feature is that of his mother's eyes. But what if, Lily had a secret child by her lover, passed off to her husband as his? Why should You-Know-Who care so much over a child of one years old? **_

_**Further research into Severus Snape (see again, my other work **__Severus Snape: Saint or Scoundrel__**) reveals more to the puzzle. Son of Eileen Prince, a pureblood witch and last of the Prince family, ran off with a muggle named Tobias Snape and lived an unhappy life until her mysterious death. Although much of her story had been obscured by her family, certain details remain—such as her pregnancy before graduating Hogwarts and her brother arrested as a Death Eater in the same year. From then on, the Prince family hid away from both scandals, claiming no connection to You-Know-Who or muggles. But was Eileen hiding more than her half-blood pregnancy? Could she have been, in fact, pregnant with You-Know-Who's heir? For if this is true, and Harry is Snape's son, then You-Know-Who's attempted murder of Harry Potter was not to be the death of an innocent child, but the death of his grandson, heir and future dark wizard.**_

A shadow suddenly fell across Chapter 8: _Disturbed and Dangerous_. She slammed the book shut, looking up all while inwardly praying that it was not Mafalda.

"Rose? Rose?" Albus repeated, looming over her instead. "We're here at Hogwarts."

"We are?" She exclaimed, glancing at the window to see nothing in the pitch darkness.

"Yeah," Albus said, studying her. "You didn't even look up when the trolley came by. I guess you really liked it then?"

It took a moment of contemplating past the wild thoughts floating through her mind about Harry Snape, the disturbed and dangerous who spoke parseltongue and had strange visions before she understood what "It" was.

"Oh, yeah, the Wizard of…was great." She said lamely. Al shot her a strange look, his brow wrinkled. But he shook his head, silently exiting the compartment after Elora, leaving Rose behind with their trunks and pets. Immediately, she quickly unlatched her trunk as soon as she was certain that Albus's footsteps were faint and far enough away, stashing Rita Skeeter's _Harry Potter:_ _The Boy Who Lied_ beneath her robes.

Rose grimaced all through Professor Sprout's welcoming speech. True, the Headmistress was a Hufflepuff, but so was Rose and she'd never use so many words like "mirth", "jaunty" "merry" "delight" or "encouragement". But the rest of the Hall seemed attentive, even the Slytherin side where Mafalda sat primly instead of holding court with that little Amaryllis. Most surprisingly, James was sitting upright and eyes facing the staff table, seeming to drink in every word with a small shudder_. Perhaps he hasn't weaned out __**all **__his immaturity yet then_, Rose thought crossly.

And all though she was certain that Byme and the house-elves had cooked all day to prepare such a welcoming feast as this, Rose was mentally counting how many courses could they possibly have cooked and that she be expected to eat before they were dismissed. Finally though, Sprout grandly dismissed them and Rose shot up like a racehorse in the starting gate, Duncan jerking and knocking over his goblet in surprise. The rest of the house joined her, Rose towards the head of the line as they passed the fruit still-lifes and a prefect switched the bottles according to the new combination set up. With a small clink, the door swung wide and Rose filtered in with the others.

"Rose!" Mary-Jo Cattermole called out, shaking her dark hair back. "Do you want to hear the Wicked Witches's new song? It's called _Ruby_—"

"No, I'm going to bed early tonight, goodnight!" Rose called out over her shoulder, positively fleeing into the tunnels to the second year girls dorm. She quickly dressed into her pajamas and crawled into bed before surreptitiously pulling out the book again. The muggle storybook's cover still glinted brightly back at her. But the inside was still the secret past that Rose had never known about before, dog-eared to page 78.

She continued reading the book like it was a horrible nightmare that she wanted to wake up from but couldn't do anything except scream standing still. Chapter 8_: Disturbed and Dangerous_, suggested that he had the darkest powers since before Herpo the Foul's time, with Seeing, Parseltongue, a mastery of the Dark Arts, necromancy and possessing souls. Chapter 9 discussed Uncle Harry's various romances. "_**Although it seemed that the Harry and Ginny romance was well-under away; he mysteriously broke up with her at Dumbledore's funeral, leaving Ginny rather heart-broken. It was reported that she cried quite a bit afterwards in the following days and even before, like she knew it was coming. Although, Harry's rumored lover, Dumbledore, was dead, he was in the midst of planning a year long trip, in which he and secret girl-friend, Hermione Granger, since their fourth year (refer to **__Chapter 7: The Triwizard Tournament__** for details) would be alone together—**_

Her reading was cut off by the sound of footsteps and hastily, Rose pushed the book over her pillow and hissed "nox!" as she collapsed against her pillow, faking deep breathing.

The other girls appeared fooled as the quietly got into bed around her. Soon, their deep breaths replaced Rose's as she tossed and turned most of the night.

…_it is now discovered that Harry Potter, may have not been a Potter at all!… Harry's rumored lover, Dumbledore…secret girl-friend, Hermione Granger…_

It wasn't true, of course. It _couldn't_ be. Mum married Dad, not Uncle Harry. And surely, the Ministry wouldn't make a murderer thier Head Auror? And, Albus's middle name was _Severus_. But then, James was named after his grandfather (James Potter was Uncle Harry's father, of course). But Albus Severus?

The next morning, Rose overslept so deeply that Molly couldn't wake her and left her there until mid-way through breakfast, Mary Jo came back to find her. She had been up late last night; restlessly tossing and turning herself as her mind turned and tossed over that book all night. And now she was late for Transfiguration as she went running through the halls, occasionally glimpsing a few Slytherins and Hufflepuffs walking through the lower levels of Hogwarts as she passed. But it wasn't until she reached the fifth floor and slid into her seat did she find a particular Slytherin.

"Here," Albus said, pushing two pieces of toast both smuthered in jam at her. Rose didn't need to hear anything else as she jammed the gooey bread into her mouth and swallowed quickly as Professor Delacour strutted in.

"_Bonjour_, calasse," The part-veela said in her thick and throaty voice that possessed a tongue too clumsy to handle English well. "Zis see-meesour, ve'll start more diffi-cul tranzefigurationuz. Last year, ve focus-sed on ob-ga-ects to ob-ga-ects and zis year, ve vill start animalez to ob-ga-ects." With a wave of her small wand, the parakeet on her desk in it's cage became a goblet in a cage.

"Wicked," Rose breathed, itching to try. Transfiguration was not her best class, her best being in Charms, but she loved it all the same. As Ollivander's assistant, Verity, had mentioned once, Rose and her particular wand had all the power needed in transfiguration, but none of the subletly, making the class a challenge, unlike Charms in which there was nothing subtle about it.

The class became so noisy from the squawks and squeaks of birds, rats, incantations and the croaking toad that Rose didn't hear the door open. But then, when she looked up, there was Neville at Professor Delacour's desk, his mouth moving rapidly before she nodded and he scooted down the aisle. The classroom quieted as they all eyed him nervously wondering what they might have done until he stopped in front of her and Al's desks.

"Rose, you need to get whatever you want to bring from your dorms. I'm sending you home through the floo in my office," he said, looking incredibly grim-faced as Albus glanced at her nervously.

She half-rose before glancing at Professor Delacour. She nodded and Rose instantly began dumping her things into her bag, Albus helping her before she hurried off, impatient to get all their eyes off of her and worry rising like bile in her stomach.

Rose raced back to her dorm and dumped her books for the afternoon classes onto her bed and grabbed items from her trunk to stuff in her school bag; her Quidditch books, wand, trainers...A few minutes later, she burst into Professor Neville's office where he was waiting as a green fire roared.

"Your brother just went through," he said urgently as she hurried over to the floo. Then his face softened as she grasped a handful and stepped into the fireplace. "I'm sorry, Rose." She heard him say before the fire whipped her away and sent her spinning home.

Coughing out soot, she stumbled out, lugging her school bag. "Hugo?" She called out. Her brother was there, still sooty, but his face had clean streaks down his cheeks. Both of her parents were there too, Dad stroking Mum's hair as she sobbed.

* * *

**I'd like to first offer an apology. My original hope was to finish the series by the end of January. And here we are and I've only uploaded 14/21 chapters-7 more to go! Well, that's not technically true. I've actually written up to Chapter 19 now. But when will I get them uploaded? Honestly, I don't have a clue. This just happens to be bad timing for me. I'm leaving this week to start running around the state going to college auditions and when I get done in March, I'll be focusing on my last school musical, which I am a lead in. So free time is sort of scheduled for April. **

**This chapter goes out to the readers who asked me to upload another chapter. And I left you on another one of my cliffhangers! Perhaps I'll set your minds at ease if you leave me reviews...But speaking of uploading, for the fans of my Christmas Tales series, it's on hiatus for now. I might not touch again until next Christmas but it will be completed someday. **

**But, I do have some good news. I've only three more chapters to write and a fan by the name of shmankingowner44 who asked to make a fan video starring my series. (Not only was I highly flattered, but I said yes!) I believe there is currently auditions going on for the voices of my characters. Once it is posted, I'll add a link for the readers.**


	15. The Fat Friar's Folly

**Badgering Others**

Chapter 15: The Fat Friar's Folly

* * *

It was cold and clear outside on that winter's day as Rose stood before her Mum's mirror and tried to coax her curls. That Sleekeasy potion Rose had found in her parents' bathroom was working wonders, turning unruly curls slender and straight. This was possibly the first time Rose had ever set herself in front of a mirror to try and tame her hair but the girl with bloodshot eyes dressed in black didn't look like her either.

Nana Granger was dead. It had been a sudden thing; she had gone to bed early one night and when Grandpa had come in to join her, she was already gone. Nothing painful like Luna's almost death seemed, Nana had just drifted off.

Dad had taken over the family, inviting Grandpa Granger to stay in the guest room, making funeral arrangements, cooking, keeping her and Hugo informed, giving Mum someone to cry on. Mum hadn't gone in to work since; she just lay curled up in her bed until today. It had been four days since the day Rose had left Hogwarts and today was the funeral. Dad had told her and Hugo that morning to wear black muggle clothes and had hurried off to oversee some other detail. Now, as Rose came downstairs, her feet tight inside the cramped and shiny black shoes, she saw her family there all wearing black. Mum was even out of her bedroom, looking unteary for a change, her hair in a neat bun and in a black dress. Dad drove them to the graveyard where other cars were parked, including a flowery black hearse. Hugo pulled his nose away from the glass as they climbed out and crunched through the snow towards a small group gathered amongst the graves.

A neat hole had been dug out of the frozen ground and a coffin lay open beside it. The family joined the circle nearest to the coffin and one man, dressed in black robes like wizard wear stepped forward.

"Friends," he said gravely. "We all gathered here mourn the loss of Helen Anne Volant Granger, but we are here to also celebrate her life. This death was not in vain or a careless act of fate, but a peaceful acceptance that Death will come and Helen has accepted that. But she did not wait out her life for Death to come! She made good friends. She loved a man for fifty-three years and raised a daughter well. She worked diligently …"

Rose's mind drifted off admist the monologue. She appreciated his soothing words, but they only offered the facts, not the details of Nana's life. She loved Shakespeare and her favorite thing to do in the evenings was to eat buttered bread and milk while reading. She could once play the flute and still owned one. Nana thought that _My Fair Lady_ was the best movie ever and she always said "All things are difficult before they are easy." Nana had curly hair, hair exactly like Mum's when it had once been brown and she loved daffodils because it meant spring was coming.

Rose became aware that the man had stopped talking now and as people murmured, she was walking up the coffin, clutching the yellow, red-tipped roses she was supposed to drop in. Dad took Mum's hand as they steeped forward and gently put in a copy of _A Winter's Tale_ and _Pygmalion_. Hugo followed her up after them as Mum stepped back stoically. Rose reached the coffin and looked down before unconsciously dropping the roses in. They landed by her Nana's hands.

Nana looked too still and pale to be all right. The greyed curls looked stiff and there was no scent of talc powder and her tea in the winter air, but her face remained peaceful which helped unclenched Rose's stomach somewhat. Rose didn't remember backing away, but then Nana's face was gone as she was standing by her Mum as Grandpa leaned over the coffin tenderly.

Rose stood still there, not even taking in any murmured remorses or any more of these muggle rituals until Hugo touched her arm.

He shuffled beside her, but couldn't seem to put any words together. He hadn't said anything in the last couple days though either. He and Nana had been close, Rose realized, suddenly feeling guilt. Hugo had started reading thanks to Nana showing him all the muggle books at her house that he had never heard before and she had explained the function of every muggle device in her house with more patience than Rose had ever known. She gently pulled her arm around him as they shuffled to rejoin the family, who was talking privately to the robed man.

"So sorry for your loss," he said gravely. "But take comfort that she is in the arms of God now, up in Heaven above."

_Heaven_. Wizards weren't religious for the most part—after all, muggles used religion to try and wipe them out, but she knew from Nana that Heaven was where everyone's souls went when they were good to die.

"How do you know she's in Heaven?" Rose asked, her voice hoarse. The man noticed her then and smiled gently.

"Loving you was enough good to take her there," He said kindly.

By Sunday, the house reeked of dying flowers and re-heated meals brought by sympathetic friends of Grandpa and Nana Granger and more food from Grandma Weasley. Rose could smell the molding roses through the carpet of her room. In the four days she had been home for, she had barely tread outside her door, occasionally to reheat some food at ten o'clock in the morning and then again around five automatically and to the bathroom, during which she dully noticed that Grandpa was still occupying the guest room.

As the four o'clock sky drew inky-dark, there was a knock on the door and Dad poked his head in.

"Can we come in?" He asked rather gently. From her seat on the bed, she shrugged and swung her feet up and hugged them to herself.

Dad entered, Hugo shuffling in after, shutting the door quietly behind. Hugo took a seat in her desk chair and Dad perched himself awkwardly next to her, trying to take in both of them at the same time.

"I know this is hard on you, kids." He started, his voice cracking like Fred's was prone to. He cleared his throat and continued. "We've only lost Crookshanks before, but this isn't much different. Nana was an older woman and muggles don't live quite as long as wizards. The muggle Healers say that she went peacefully, like falling asleep."

Without nodding, Rose blinked and a fuzzy memory of an orange, bow-legged cat whose's fur was almost as thick and bushy as her hair. Crookshanks had been her first doll, hadn't she once dressed him in Hugo's baby clothes? But when Crookshanks hadn't woken up one morning, Hugo had cried more because even though the cat let her dress him up, he had only purred when Hugo petted him.

"I was a couple years older when I really lost someone close to me, my brother, Fred; but we keep living. They're ok now." Dad swallowed hard, looking at them but Hugo had turned himself away completely and Rose didn't dare lift her head up. "Come here, Rosie Posie Petals, Hugie."

The restraint was lost on her, Rose and Hugo were pulled into Dad's arms somehow, but willingly squished together as they cried. _Oh Nana, why did you go, how, did it hurt, where are you now, only sevety-eight years old, why, don't go…_

Finally, the tears slowed and Rose could see past to her brother's curly hair, freckled face and brown, bloodshot eyes. His nose was runny and for a moment, he looked like her little brother when he was still so little that he'd read Beedle the Bard to Crookshanks out loud and she surprised herself with a small giggle.

Hugo snorted then, probably thinking of some time he remembered her and Dad smiled down on them both. "You see? We live. And you two need to start living at Hogwarts again. You'll be flooing back tomorrow morning."

He kissed their heads and left, Hugo following back to his room as Rose pulled out her bag to pack.

Half hour in, she'd collected her clothes, wand, books, a few spare quills but she was coming up empty-handed in search of her sneakers. Of course, she'd been wearing nice black shoes mostly, with the funeral and all.

Rose went hurrying down the hall, poking her head in doorways to glance. She hadn't worn them since she had left school, flooing herself to the living room. She hurried down the stairs and through the kitchen. She had kicked off her shoes and probably left them there—

"What do you mean I can't light a fire?" She heard the shout. "Floo! What about reading by a nice fire?"

Rose edged closer to the open door and peeked in: It was Grandpa and Mum. She cringed and kept walking quickly to the living room. All Grandpa had done lately when he talked, he'd shout and explode. _"Your grandpa just doesn't like having to depend of magic." _Dad had whispered to her the first time this had happened.

She grabbed her shoes and turned, then came to an abrupt halt at the sight of her grandfather's stilted form, standing in the doorway. "Grandpa?" Rose asked carefully, cringing with worry.

"Wildflower, you remind me so much of her." He said heavily.

The remark startled her somewhat. "Who, Grandpa?"

"Both of them." He answered cryptically, shaking his head. "Of Helen and Hermione, but there is something completely different about you, that reminds me who you are." Self-consciously, she touched her red hair and he laughed. "Wildflower, my girl, you have their curls, yes, even if yours is as red as your father's and with a face of freckles and blue eyes to boot, but you have some things only Granger girls have."

"What's that?" Rose asked eagerly, but he only half-smiled.

"Magic." he answered.

"Grandma wasn't a witch, was she?" Rose asked uncertain suddenly.

Grandpa scowled and sat down in one of thier chairs. "No! No, no, you don't need a wand to do magic! I have magic too." He whispered. "I must, to have my daughter and you be witches. That means everybody has magic. So why can't I be part of the Wizarding World?"

"Because I wouldn't fit in the muggle world." Rose countered, but she frowned too. "you're right. Why can't we live together? If I were a muggle, I'd wish for things to be magical and not so...so..."

"Mundane?" Grandpa suggested. "I suppose that's why Helen and I always read and made sure your mother read too. In fact..." He got up and ran his hand over the bookshelf, pulling one from the stack of dentistry books Dad had brought over for him.

"She wanted to start you on reading The Bard this summer." Grandpa said sorrowfully.

"Beedle?" Rose answered, startled. "But I've been reading him since I was a baby! I didn't know muggles read him too."

"Beetle? Like the band_? I Wanna Hold Your Hand, Like Dreamers Do, Across the Universe_?" Grandpa suggested strangely.

"No, Beedle the Bard!" She corrected him, hopping up to pull a much-read copy off the shelf and exchanging it with him.

Grandpa studied it intently, an expression of curiosity exactly like Hugo's written across his face. "A book of Wizarding fairytales…you mean you have a magical version of Grimm's? I suppose this will be my first study on how to live with wizards."

"You're staying?" Rose threw out.

"Yes, yes, but my dear girl, you mean that you've never read Shakespeare?"

"Oh, Shakespeare?" Rose replied doubtfully, looking at the book in hand. "Yeah I have," she bluffed. Actually, thanks to Hugo and Mum, she knew the stories _of Romeo and Juliet_, _Midsummer Night's Dream_, _Hamlet_ and _Macbeth_ fairly well.

Grandpa crossed his arms, eyes twinkling. "Read the front page then for me."

She opened it a crack, letting it fall open to a spidery script across the front page.

_**Helen Anne Volant, 1954**_

_**Hermione Jean Granger, 1993**_

_**Rose Nymphadora Weasley, 2018**_

A whirl of green flames and then Rose was skidding into the Hufflepuff Head's office. Professor Jones was waiting patiently for her there, her office paneled with cherry wood. "You've already eaten?" She checked over her well-being motherly as Rose nodded and agreed to her inquires. "Breakfast is just finishing up and first period starts in a few minutes. You have Defense, first thing I believe, although if you feel like you're not up to it, I can have you excused from class, Rose, although you do need to catch up what you lost out on."

"No, no, I'll be fine." She assured Professor Jones.

"Very well, but my ears are always listening if you need them, Rose."

Rose was able to absorb herself into the flow of students heading off to first period easily enough from there. She didn't see any other second years until she reached the DADA classroom where she took her customary seat beside Scorpius.

Scorpius nodded and murmured an apology for her loss under the cover of roll call, but otherwise, Rose was able to get through an entire lesson on kappas even with McLaggen's snide remarking on the kappas not being able to taste any difference between mud or water.

Mary Jo and Edith invited her after class filed out into the hall to join them in the library to study, but Rose waved them off and took off for the dormitories.

It was empty, the most barren she had ever seen it. The other students had classes except the second years who had free period now but obviously, she was the only one who chose not to join in on the study group. Well, she had her own studying to do.

Reaching into her schoolbag, she pulled out the old, faded red book of Shakespeare Nana left to her, flipping the pages to Act Two, Scene Three of _Romeo and Juliet_. Grandpa was right—she knew nothing of Shakespeare, only of what she had assumed from others. But it was a language all it's own with people speaking it as naturally as English.

"Fair morning to you, Miss Weasley," the voice of the ghostly Fat Friar greeted as he floated across the room to her.

"Good morning," she replied, looking up from a page of an early morning garden of herbs.

For once, he looked a little grave and solemn instead of his usually cheering self. "I was sorry to hear of your loss. Tis truly terrible that parting should cause such sorrow."

"I'm alright," Rose confirmed. "Nana was older and muggles don't live as long…But she went peacefully. Grandpa's even doing ok—he's going to stay with us now. And he gave me this book that she wanted to give me before she died," she added, holding the Shakespeare up proudly. "I only just started reading _Romeo and Juliet_."

The Fat Friar looked slightly unnerved and rather less of a silver shade. "Your grandmother liked Shakespeare then."

"Oh yes," Rose informed him. "They named Mum, Hermione, after the queen in _A Winter's Tale_. I suppose that if she did go to Heaven like the muggle priest said she did, she'd like to meet Shakespeare while she's up there. Wait! You're a friar…aren't friars like a priest? Do you think souls can meet each other up there?"

The Fat Friar looked terrible now. If anything, he was less frightening than a mouse, but the look of absolute defeat silenced her.

Finally, he raised his head, speaking slowly. "I was a priest…my father had me spend my life away from Hogwarts at a church—I was muggleborn, see. I fell in love with God, but couldn't deny the fact I was a wizard either, so I chose to use my powers to serve Him. Being a ghost, I do not know what Heaven is like. You see…I was afraid that I wouldn't be allowed into Heaven."

"Everyone is, as long as they loved—" Rose began before cutting herself off.

"Centuries worth of difference in belief, Rose." The Fat Friar said humbly. "If being a wizard was enough to condemn me to Hell, then I couldn't imagine how far down I would be sentenced to after Verona."

"Verona?" Have you been there? It's where the play takes place."

"I _was_ there." He admitted miserably. "I was Friar Lawrence."

Rose was stunned into silence, her finger still marking the page where the character entered into his herb garden to gather, presenting a Shakespearean monologue. He continued quickly. "I told young Will my story one night…he asked for shelter in my church and he turned my sins into a play. I spent that summer in Italy while there was a blood feud between the two families. But, one night, I realized that a marriage might end the fighting and I brewed Amortentia. A bit of Juliet's hair from confessions, Romeo's while in my garden…I slipped them drinks and watched it unfold."

He started to weep silver tears now. "It was all my fault! The Amortentia and the Draught of Living Death, it was all my doing and they both committed suicide! How could I face God now? I ran away from facing justice for my crimes in the affair and I fled God's wrath."

"But you were trying to do the right thing!" Rose cried out, tears falling too down her face. Merlin, would she ever stop crying?

Friar Lawrence looked at her piteously. "No good deed goes unpunished, Miss Weasley."

* * *

**This was a very sad chapter. I planned this from the beginning and had parts of it written down when the unthinkable happened. My dear, practially a second grandmother to me, Great Aunt Linda suddenly died of cancer barely discovered three weeks ago and too advanced to cure last December. I cried my way through this chapter, I'll admit it. And I dedicate this one in her memory.**

**And Grandma Granger's name: Helen (the face that launched a thousand ships) was mythically the mother of Hermione. Anne Volant was Jo's mother's name. I thought it would be a nice homage to her. **

**I haven't heard from my beta in ages but it's been a while and I won't be around to upload much for a few weeks as it is, so I'd thought I'd better get this up. Ast? Let me know what you think, all right?**

**We're almost done...and the question will come up, what is next? Well, I have Year 3, which is Scorpius's story in the works. But I think I will take a short break and take the advice of one of my newest and most faithful reviewers, JJ Rust, and go through and thoroughly edit both years for errors as well as get myself so far ahead in writing before I begin to upload anything. I've also contemplated writing a prequel that will explain a lot of the backstory of Year 3. Can't say much about that though, without giving everything away!**

**"All things are hard before they are easy" is by John Norely. **


	16. Incendio

**The Beater and Badger**

Chapter 16: Incendio

* * *

Rose skipped classes all the next few days until it was the weekend again and it was Sunday. She missed two Quidditch practices and another weeks worth of classes. It was probably the first time she ever intentionally did something like that, but it was also the first time she didn't get a rush of excitement, that thrill tickling in her stomach. She lay in bed, finishing her first of Shakespeare's plays. And she cried again as who she now knew was the Fat Friar tried to explain and save himself from being accused of murders. Friar Lawrence, as she could only think of him now, was a Hufflepuff. The Boy Who Lived was a Gryffindor. And now, she had two books with proof that neither of them was anywhere as great as they should have been.

_No. This can't be it._ Rose thought stubbornly. _If it's true, then there's got to be more books. Uncle Harry wouldn't have a Chocolate Frog Card if it was._ Her mind made up, Rose left her dormitory, hurrying to the library, still wearing a bathrobe over pajamas.

"Are you all right?" Madam Dubvessa asked as she started shelving books next to Rose. Rose just nodded, glad that the librarian was blind behind her dark glasses and couldn't see her pajamas and red-rimmed eyes. Madam Dubvessa raised her eyebrows in such a Rose-ish like manner that she caught herself from giggling. "I'm assuming there's more bothering you than just the news of your grandmother, but I shall not pry. Just know that I have an excellent ear and am very good at keeping secrets, Miss Weasley."

Friar Lawrence floated through the bookshelf then, looking rather contrite. "I was looking for you in the hallways until I was told that you were in the library. I shouldn't have told you my story, Miss Weasley."

"Does anyone else know?" Rose asked softly. Madam Dubvessa smiled and walked away smoothly to put a copy of Mary Shelley's _The Modern Prometheus_ away on another shelf.

"One Head of Hufflepuff, but never a student before," he admitted. "I suppose that trying to offer my condolences and the mention of that play was enough to bring back the old memories."

"I'm not sorry you did tell me," Rose offered. "I just…I guess the shock of it on top of everything else..."

"I understand completely, Miss Weasley," the Friar began.

"Rose. Please, call me Rose and just one question, please." Rose suggested. Friar Lawrence waited for her to speak. "Do you think that just love is enough to make up for any sins and make someone good enough to go to Heaven?"

The ghostly Friar paused, trying to answer himself before he could confess any answer to her when Madam Dubvessa returned, flipping through a different book. "If I may quote from one of Shakespeare's greatest of plays, _Romeo and Juliet_…" Madam Dubvessa requested. "_See what a scourge is laid upon your hate, that heaven finds means to kill your joys with love_."

Then a sad smile graced Friar Lawrence once more as he nodded gratefully. "I do not know what Heaven deems acceptable or not, but I do know that without love, hate will kill everything good in life, as young Will wrote. Love, my dear girl, _Omnia Vincit Amor_."

The next day, Rose went back to class. She stuck it out through McLaggen's speeches and all the way to the end of the day in Herbology as they packed away mandrakes. Elora was her partner and a ridiculous one at that as she had ended up the only pair of fluffy pink earmuffs. They couldn't be heard in this class and Rose couldn't read lips, so they passed notes back and forth. As Elora packed down the soil, Rose read her next entry.

_Have you seen Tomcat lately? He got out of Gryffindor Tower the other day._

She scribbled a quick reply without hesitating. _**No, but I'll help you look after class.**_

As soon as the bell rung, Neville gave them 'thumbs-up' and they abandoned their earmuffs (Rose's were thankfully black), hurrying into the castle. "I haven't seen him since he got out but he's—" Elora explained, as they rushed against the cold into the castle.

"Right there!" Rose said, pointing to a white and speckled kneazle who leapt and scampered away quickly. The two girls followed him through the castle, running down hallways, breathing hard until they spotted his tufted tail slinking up a staircase. Rose and Elora climbed the steps, spiraling up as they chased down Tomcat until the stairs leveled out.

There were cats _everywhere_, covering the carpet, climbing on furniture. Meows echoed off the walls. Here and there, she spotted the tufted ears and tails of a tell-tale kneazle with speckled fur but Tomcat was unrecognizable among them.

"We're searching for a kneazle among _**more**_ kneazles, Elora!" Rose said exasperatedly. "Are we even sure that kneazle was Tomcat?"

"Kneazles?" a sharp voice asked from doorway across the room. "Do you want a kneazle kitten?" A woman eyed them closely as Rose stared back undaunted.

Whatever Rose had been expecting at the top of stairs, it hadn't been her. The woman's hair was grey and pinned up with a brooch missing a stone, grizzled pieces falling out; her face was grey too. Even her clothes were faded, a flowery dress that went down to her ankles, thick black army boots poking out from underneath. She looked almost absurdly Muggle but Rose suspected that putting her in robes wouldn't be any better of a look.

"No," Elora answered, a bit bravely. "My kneazle climbed up here, I don't suppose you've seen him? White fur, bronze speckling, tufted tail and ears, light green eyes?

The woman rubbed her chin, thinking. "That sounds like a litter I had last year…Dorothy and Timothy's kittens. I gave one to Neville Longbottom and sold the rest—"

"That's mine!" Elora interrupted, pointing to Tomcat, who was perched on a velvet chair. His tail flicked and eyes widened as if to say, _Are you sure I'm yours? I believe __**you**__ are mine_.

The woman glanced once at him, scuttled over to the chair through cats, picked him up and passed him over to Elora. During it all, Tomcat didn't even lift a paw; he merely curled himself into their arms.

"How you'd do that?" Rose asked, amazed. Tomcat had more than once clawed her for coming too close, although Elora and this woman remained unscathed.

"I bred him, if he knows what's good for him, he won't touch me," she said confidently, squinting at Elora. "So, you're Longbottom's little girl? The younger one, I mean…Erica, Ella, Flora…"

"Elora," Elora supplied. "And this is Rose Weasley, my friend."

"Sit down then, sit," she said impatiently, shooing cats off the chairs for them. "Well then, I suppose we haven't been introduced yet. I'm Mrs.—Professor Figg," she corrected herself. "Twenty years and I still can't get that right…."

"What do you teach?" Rose asked. She couldn't remember having ever seen Professor Figg before nor had a lesson taught by her.

"Muggle Studies," Professor Figg said promptly. "Suited for it, considering I'm a Squib. Over sixteen years I spent living among Muggles too, until after the Second Wizarding War and Hogwarts needed a new Muggle Studies teacher. Your uncle recommended me, actually," she said, sounding cheerful.

"Which—"

"Potter, of course!" She fairly shouted. "I lived nearby to keep watch over him for Dumbledore, even baby-sat him as a boy now and then," she said, sounding pleased. "I wasn't as kind as I ought to have been, but those wretched Muggles would have never let him come to me if I hadn't been. In spite of it though, he was James and Lily's boy through and through," she sighed noisily. "Even during that summer when the Dementors attacked—he was a bit moody that year, like a hippogriff offended, he was—that's when he finally knew that I was a Squib too, but even with the newspapers slandering him thanks to that insect, Rita Skeeter—"

"Rita Skeeter?" Rose interrupted.

"You heard me, an insect!" Mrs. Figg said flatly. "Always crawling where she's not wanted and biting where it hurts…thank Merlin your mother finally swatted her down."

Rose didn't know what to say to that, but Elora, who had no idea who Rita Skeeter was, did have something to say.

"You said that you were Tomcat's first owner?" She piped up interestedly.

"Yes," Mrs. Figg said a bit calmer now. "Yes, it's what I do as a hobby…I breed kneazles and kneazle-cat mixes. Tomcat, you said? He's one of my purebreds. Actually, I just got a new litter weaned last week, ready for homes. I don't suppose either of you girls might like a kitten? I've got two left!"

Before Rose could deny her or Elora explain that Tomcat was enough, Mrs. Figg was back, holding a kitten in each hand. "They're just cats, with a pinch of kneazle in there somewhere…brother and sister."

The one in her vein-y left hand was spotted on white fur like Tomcat, but her fur was smoothed down all over. Her spotting with not quite black or grey, but almost a mottled, purplish shade. The second kitten was solid-colored, like marmalade, but his hair stood up on end like he'd been electrocuted. He had a bottlebrush tail and was a rather large kitten, the marmalade living likeness of her Mum's old cat, Crookshanks. Instantly, Rose knew what she should do with them as she carefully took them both. "My brother and cousin would like them, I think." Rose offered. "We used to have a cat and Crookshanks was their favorite." Mrs. Figg eyed her and nodded carefully.

"Very well, find them a good home, child. And if the bells are an indication, you two should be getting to dinner. I suppose I'll be seeing you next year in Muggle Studies, so no need for good-byes."

After they navigated their way back down the stairs, Rose took off for Ravenclaw Tower. She had only been there once before, but it was guarded by the only bronze knight in the school, so it was a bit conspicuous. Juggling two kittens with one hand, she shook the knight's hand and watched as if it lifted itself and raised the empty visor.

"_What joins two people, yet only touches one?_" Luna's dreamy voice asked. As Mum had told her, the original tower had been blasted off in the Battle of Hogwarts. But Mum and some Ravenclaws in her year managed to recreate the spell and they used Luna's voice to ask the questions.

Rose balanced on one foot and then the other, trying to pull the two kittens out of her hair as she thought. _What joined people? _After her conversations with Friar Lawrence, Rose had a reasonable idea. She opened her mouth to suggest _love_ and then shut it. If she had learned anything in the past couple of weeks, it was that first guesses were usually wrong…She smiled then and replied. "Marriage. Love joins them, only the ring touches."

"_Well considered! You may enter, young Hufflepuff._" Lady Luna the Bronze Knight answered as it reached to open the door for Rose. She stepped forward, marveling at the Ravenclaw common room. It had a high ceiling and spiraling staircase with bookshelves underneath, the carpet midnight blue and the ceiling painted with bronze stars. A few Ravenclaws glanced at her, but she ignored them until she heard a greeting called out.

"Rose Weasley! Come and join me," Lorcan beckoned to where he was sitting on a staircase. "I'm trying to write a new poem," He said grandly. "But would you like a carving? I have a badger that I thought Lysander might like, but you are one even though you have intelligence to get past the door." He rooted into his pocket, before pulling out a miniature badger carving. "Can you think of a word that rhymes with orange?"

"Nothing's supposed to rhyme with orange, Lorcan." Rose explained as she untangled another cat paw from her curls. "But do you know where Hugo is?"

"Come with me!" Lorcan said, skipping up the stairs. "He's in his dorm and he's been looking rather sallow-faced in his sorrows."

"Well, I've got something that might cheer him up," she said before they barged in.

It was for boys, Rose could tell by the mess. The only bed neatly made was the only one occupied. Hugo started at the sight of her, dropping his book on the bed.

"Hey, Hughie," Rose said carefully. "I was just thinking…We don't get to enjoy the crups anymore now that we're at Hogwarts." Her little brother mumbled something. "Why, the last time I remember what was like to have a pet was when we had old Crookshanks," she rambled, watching his face. "Do you remember what it's like to have a cat purr when you pet him?"

"Not really," Hugo said arrogantly and a bit snottily too. Then, one of the kittens behind her back gave an audible "Merow".

"Well, start remembering," Rose said as she extracted one kitten, the one whose fur stood on end, out of her hair again and dumped it on Hugo's bed.

For a moment, they eyed each other. Then, the kitten jumped up, settled itself on Hugo's stomach, waited to be petted and read to. Boy and cat seemed to come to life like from statue to human. "It's a girl?" He asked, lifting the kitten to check. "Tremble kinda looks like Crookshanks too!" Hugo commented happily.

"Tremble's a nice name. Hugo, can you think of a rhyme for orange?" Lorcan asked as Rose tried not to laugh. The way the kitten's fur stuck up did make it look like she was trembling in fright!

"I've got another, a boy. I'd thought we could send it to Lily." She offered, pulling out the splotched color kitten.

"Good idea," Hugo agreed. "Thanks, Rose. Lorcan, try 'doorhinge!'" He called after them as the two of them left boy and cat alone.

"That was a good thing, you did." Lorcan agreed. "I haven't seen the boy so wick since before Christmas."

"Wick?"

"Alive, growing, strong." Lorcan elaborated. "Or _crecimiento_, if you prefer Spanish."

When Rose returned to the Den, she found an unexpected visitor waiting for her on her bed and an unwanted one at that. Molly was sitting there, waiting and watching as Rose emerged from the tunnel. "How are you doing, Rose?"

"Fine," she said neutrally. "Do you want anything, Molly?"

"Yes," Molly said staunchly, shaking her flyaway, thin brunette hair. "I want to know if you're all right."

"Well, I've told you that already," Rose snapped moodily.

"No, you lied to me already," Molly said firmly.

Before she knew what she even saying, she was shouting. "SO I'M NOT ALLOWED TO MOURN A LITTLE BIT? For _**Merlin**_'s _**sake**_, Molly, why can't you ever _leave_ me the _**hell**_ _alone_?" Rose shouted, anger clogging her throat by the end, burning like bile. Molly looked as if she had been slapped across the face as Rose turned away, but no slap could have gotten Rose's attention back faster than Molly's rebuttal.

"Because you're my little cousin and my favorite one, too." Rose turned back slowly, slumping on the bed as Molly continued, her eyes starting to fill with tears. "You are _Rose Weasley_ and you knew it—the bravest, most daring, smartest of us _all_. You could out fly James, out prank Teddy, be more protective over Albus than Vic was of all of us…You were younger than me, but I was _still_ _**jealous**_ of you, Rose! And last year…I thought for sure you'd be a Gryffindor, maybe a Ravenclaw or even Slytherin, but never like the family's _boring_ and _loyal __**Hufflepuff**_ Weasley."

The tears were falling from both of them now. "I didn't understand it then—but you were only all of those things because you were the most loyal, the hardest working, most stubborn one of us all. And it still made you the best of us!" Molly burst out. "So, _**damn it**_ if I'm worried because you seem to have lost yourself!"

Rose's mouth was wide-open now, letting the tears fall in as Molly continued to rant. "Missed two practices…you've never missed anything to do with Quidditch in your life! Skipped all your classes…"

"Molly!" Rose almost yelled to be heard over her and the dormitory met a ringing silence. "I'm sorry," she whispered, self-consciously. "I've just had a lot of things to deal with and then the whole holidays happened…But I'm sorry too." She plunged bravely. "I used to think that you were a snobby, careless person and I was wrong. Really, really wrong." Rose swallowed, and then went on earnestly. "You care about everyone and you want the best for them; you work hard just to keep up sometimes but you never quit and until now, this is the first time I've ever heard you get angry and I would have blown up ages ago if I had to sit next to Lucy commentating—"

Molly laughed. It was such a high, pretty sound -like a flute- that Rose cut herself off to listen to it. "Lucy couldn't tell a Bludger from a Beater if they hit her in the face."

"You can?" Rose shot out, before blushing. "I didn't mean—"

"Just because I don't play Quidditch doesn't mean that I don't know it," Molly said, a bit ruthlessly.

"Can you play it?" Rose asked, excitement sparked.

Molly looked at her for a long moment. "No."

"Why not?" Rose asked, stunned. "How can you stick through Lucy's commentating, correcting her every word if you don't like it?"

Molly gritted her teeth. "I _love_ Quidditch!" She suddenly bawled. "It's _heights_ I hate!"

Rose paused in surprised, but she re-gained momentum quickly. "Molly Caroline Weasley, we are going to get you on a broom this summer and _flying_."

Molly's mouth dropped open. "Rose, I couldn't!"

"You will!" Rose practically shouted. "We will or else I'll put Mafalda on it instead!"

Molly stared at her, shocked. For an awful moment, Rose feared she had gone too far again but then Molly burst into laughter instead of tears.

"Oh, I'd like to see her play Quidditch in front of the whole school instead of commentating behind the scenes for once!" Molly giggled. "Did you hear what she was telling the Slytherins why the games got switched so Hufflepuff played instead of Gryffindor? That James was caught using Parseltongue that he got from Uncle Harry to use the snakes as spies to steal their plays!" Molly laughed, but not hard enough to not notice Rose not laughing.

"James can speak Parseltongue too?" Rose asked anxiously, thinking of the two she had overheard discussing fixing the games.

"What? No!" Molly scolded. "Uncle Harry could only speak it because of Voldemort, it's all just rumors now."

"So he is descended from Voldemort!" Rose cried out, alarmed. Molly sat upright, staring her down. Then, she spoke in a sharp, short tone.

"Where did you hear that? Mafalda's scraps of rumors?" Miserably, Rose shook her head and yanked the book from underneath her mattress, handing it off to Molly.

Molly blinked at the front cover, but her experiences as a Prefect had her flip open the book and read the inside page. "The Boy Who _Lied…_Skeeter!" Throwing the book down on the floor, she snorted. "Rose, that book isn't worth your spit much less the money you paid for it. Skeeter's what you call a yellow journalist—she takes one fact and makes a complete story out of it, a completely _**fictional**_ story. Everything Uncle Harry's been quoted on was taken completely out of context and for her own uses."

"Really?" Rose asked doubtfully, her heart rising. "How do you know all of this?"

"Lucy." Molly said as if it was really obvious. "She wants to be a journalist…Daddy says as long as she tells the truth."

A sudden thought came to her then, more of a memory really. "Did Skeeter write that article back in September? How did she get away with it?"

"Oh, she didn't write that one. She was fired years back and your mother installed a few media laws to ensure our privacy, but we couldn't do anything about that article. Her laws clearly state that if it's told to a member of the Daily Prophet and as long as we are informed of that, anything we say to them can be printed and even quoted back if you are of age or older," Molly stated, sounding like her father in a lecture.

Rose frowned, but let it go. "Do you know the spell to make fire?" she asked.

"_Incendio,_" Molly pronounced, shaking her wand. "Charms, Year 3. Why?"

Rose closed her eyes, and shook her wand in that jerky motion Molly made. Opening them, she said "_Incendio_!" and pointed triumphantly at the book which promptly burst into flame.

* * *

**So, a double chapter treat today! :D For all my readers...**

**of course, if you wanted to do something nice for me too, I'd love reviews. Double reviews would be great!**


	17. Battle of the Badgers

**The Beater and Badger**

Chapter 17: Battle of the Badgers

* * *

"What's this?" Scorpius asked, suddenly at her elbow. Pluto, his great grey owl, ruffled his wings contentedly on Scorpius's shoulders as Rose gingerly took the letter Scorpius held out.

_Dear Scorpius,_

_I don't know if your grandmother ever mentioned me (she never mentioned you to me either) but I am Andromeda Tonks, Narcissa's older sister and your great-aunt. My grandson, Edward Lupin, told me about you from what he learned from a friend of yours, Rose Weasley. Yes, I'm quite familiar with both Albus Potter and Rose Weasley._

_After hearing what Edward tells me, with quite a defensive stance on your behalf by Rose, I'm rather curious to meet you. Of course, if you'd rather not, I'd respect that, if not understand your choice. But I feel that it may have been a mistake on my part not to know my great-nephew and I'd like to make up for it._

_If you feel the same, please write back._

_Your Aunt,_

_Andromeda Tonks_

"How come I've never heard of her?" he asked suspiciously as she finished. "And what exactly did you say about me, Rose?"

Rose blushed slightly. "She was disowned for marrying a Muggleborn." Rose said carefully. "So Teddy didn't believe that my parents were okay with my being friends with a Malfoy, but I told him that you were in Ravenclaw and didn't care that I'm a Weasley anymore than I do," she finished.

"Who's Teddy?"

"Edward Remus Lupin," Rose emphasized. "Prefers to be known as Teddy. And we called her Granna Anna because her name was really long for little kids and she was like another grandmother for us."

"What are they like? Teddy and Granna Anna?" He stumbled over their names slightly, stuttering a bit on the 'gran'.

"Well," Rose considered. "Granna Anna you'd think would be really strict, but she's really just proud. She's almost unflappable though, after raising two metamorphaguses. And Teddy's just _cool_," she enthused.

"I have a quick announcement, before we release you to your morning classes," Professor Sprout fairly shouted then to be heard over the noise in the Great Hall. "Jolly good morning, isn't it?" Rose glanced up at the February sky. It was a blizzard outside this morning, so much that the ceiling was completely white. "Herbology and Care of Magical Creatures are canceled for today, there's no point in freezing." Some students broke into applause, pulling off gloves and scarves and even a pair of earmuffs gladly. "Secondly, I'd like to welcome back Professor Thomas to her early return from maternity leave and congratulations on your new daughter." Rose's absent gaze broke contact with the ceiling, whipping to the Head table. Sure enough, McLaggen was gone; Professor Thomas stood, beaming radiantly.

"Oh, very good!" Professor Thomas praised their first period class. The Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws seemed to relax, knowing there'd be no more disturbing side-remarks. "Yes, we will be picking back up with studying next class with the nundu. Oh, there's the bell! Class dismissed! Rose Weasley, please wait a moment!"

In a flurry of excitement, the class gathered their books, hurrying out while discussing loudly with one another. Scorpius slunk out last, but his head was held high as Rose approached the desk. "Yes, Professor?" Rose asked anxiously. It wasn't that she wasn't excited to see Professor Thomas again but she had been squirming in her seat for at least ten minutes needing the bathroom.

Professor Thomas had been smiling but then it faded nervously. "Oh dear," she murmured suddenly. "Rose, dear, I'll write you a pass to get you out of your next class, what is your next class?"

"History of Magic." She answered, bewildered.

"Oh, never mind about the pass, Binns will never notice." Professor Thomas assured her then. "Come, you can use my bathroom back in here now," Confused, she followed her teacher up the stairs into the office, which was painted a rather nice heliotrope color and decorated with lots of paintings. "In here, you can clean up and help yourself and I'll put the potion in a kettle to heat up—I don't know, has your mother taught you the proper charms yet?"

_The proper charms for __**what?**_ Rose wondered as she entered the bathroom, shutting the door and hitched her robes up, sitting down on the toilet in Professor Thomas's bathroom as the _**what**_ became rather bloody obvious.

"Thanks again, Professor." Rose confessed when she returned to Professor Thomas in her office, who took a sip of tea. "That would have been really embarrassing. Especially if Albus noticed that I was bleeding when I walked into History."

"The first time is always rather a mess," Professor Thomas admitted, handing her a cup. "I got mine for the first time at Hogwarts too. Parvati and I spent probably an hour trying to make the potion for the cramps ourselves because I was embarrassed to go to Madam Pomfrey and ask for help, or Merlin forbid, Professor Snape!"

Rose had meet Snape's portrait last year and knew perfectly well what Professor Thomas meant as they laughed.

"How is the baby?" She asked, swallowing the last of her potion.

Professor Thomas seemed to glow. "Hazel Thomas, another little girl. She looks a lot like Sienna did. Family is very important, Miss Weasley." She smiled even brighter. "You are very lucky to have such a loyal family."

"What do you mean?" Rose prodded as the bell rang, signaling the end of what should have been History of Magic.

"The potion should be kicking in, but if you'd like to take the rest of the morning to rest, I can have you excused from classes until after lunch, Rose." Professor Thomas promised her, writing out a pass. "But do tell Mr. Malfoy that I'm very sorry the way classes went for him, won't you? And thank your cousin, Molly." Professor Thomas told her before escorting her out.

Rose walked into the Den and was surprised to find Molly there, reading over some notes. "Don't you have class right now?" Rose asked as she sat next to her on the couch.

"The same could be said for you," Molly said absently, still reading along. "My class was canceled."

"And I have free period right now," Rose explained. "Professor Thomas said to tell you thanks, by the way."

Now Molly put down her notes, smiling faintly. "Oh, did she?"

"What for though?" Rose asked. "What did you do?"

Molly returned attention to her notes but consented to answer. "Being a Prefect does have privileges, you know. When a student reports something is wrong, it is my duty to investigate…"

"Get to the point, please Molly," Rose cut in.

"…either way, McLaggen is gone and Professor Thomas is back." She leaned over to scratch out a sentence. "Why didn't you say anything again, Rose? The way Professor McLaggen was treating your friend was abominable, really. After what Albus told me, I reported it to the Head Girl who passed it along and Professor Thomas was willing to come back early."

"You did that? For Scorpius?"

"For him, for you, for Hufflepuff, yes, I did." Molly finished off her notes. "Remember, Rose, you are a Hufflepuff and not a Gryffindor. We don't have to be brave and suffer."

She spent the rest of the morning half-glowing in admiration, half puzzled by what Molly had done as she lounged in bed until lunch. But it was after fifth period, when she spotted Scorpius and Albus coming out of Charms together.

"Hey Al, Scorp!" She called out as she hurried towards them, throwing her arms around Albus. "You git, you told Molly?"

"I did," Albus said doggedly. "And I take it you are grateful I did?"

"Still a git," she mumbled, making him snort as they walked along.

"And still a cutter," he retorted.

"I was excused from my morning classes," she retorted snootily.

"Molly, the other Weasley in Hufflepuff?" Scorpius surmised as Rose and Albus nodded. "What did you tell her, Albus?"

"That McLaggen's been a downright bastard—"

"Al!" Rose cried out in surprise. "You've never sworn before!"

"—to you and Rose, how else do you phrase it?"

It took them a few feet of suggesting names for him before they realized that Scorpius had halted.

"Scorp?" Rose ventured, looking back.

"You didn't have to tell," Scorpius said sharply. "It wasn't a big deal, all right? He wasn't the first, he won't be the last. I can defend myself you know, I don't need help!"

"Scorpius—"

"I didn't need—"

"It wasn't just for you—"

"Then why bother doing it?" Scorpius shot back, looking colder than ever.

"Because!" Rose snapped at him. "I'm a Hufflepuff and Weasley! I'm loyal and close to my family, you berk!"

There was a pause as Scorpius tried to work that one out. "I'm not your family though."

"Besides," Rose sniffed, satisfied. "You are Teddy's cousin and he's marrying _our_ cousin, Victoire. And even if you weren't distantly related, I'd still do the same because you are my friend!" As Scorpius tried to work that one out, she huffed and left the two boys behind. Mum had told her that girls mature faster than boys and today was just more proof of that, but _**honestly**_!

Mid-March was the start of the Quidditch season again, starting on Saturday morning with the Hufflepuff verus Ravenclaw game. The Badgers hadn't played any games since November, now almost four months later, but they had trained diligently over the winter for their next match. Gawain had them working for two hours, three times a week and when the spring schedules came out based on last season's scores, he only became more obsessed.

"Watch her!" Gawain would frequently gasp in the week leading up to the game, halting five players at once to watch Melly go into a dive after the Snitch. "_Stop her!_" He would cry out, sending all hell after their Seeker in the forms of looping Chasers and Rose's Bludgers. Rose chucked the Bludgers and swung the bat willingly even as her period dripped on. At first, she had ached and groaned silently at the thought of flying in her condition, but it had worked out like Professor Thomas said: a sip of the potion and exercise banished the misery.

But there was a certain buzz going around. The whole castle seemed to be getting revved up for the game too. Although the weather was still a washed-out grey, more yellow appeared through out the week on the Badgers' uniforms and even on most of Gryffindor while to contrast, Ravenclaw and Slytherin donned blues. In her classes shared with Ravenclaw or Slytherin, she was often met with snickers and taunting behind her back as she tried to gracefully ignore it, usually settling for ungraceful instead. But nothing made her more determined to win than Friday morning before Potions.

Like usual, she and Scorpius hung outside with the rest of class as the first year Gryffindors and Slytherins trickled out, a few looking slightly intimated by the taller second years.

"What's your secret this time, Rose?" she heard a sly, little voice ask. Turning, she found Mafalda and Amaryllis standing there, eagles pinned proudly to their robes.

"My secret?" she asked quickly, her mind flicking back to the ashen remains of Mafalda's book.

"Well, nobody's injured themselves this time, so we are wondering how Hufflepuff plans to win," Amaryllis explained coolly.

Rose gave a sharp retort, not interested in trading insults as Scorpius glanced at the three of them, his shoulders tensing. "We just plan to win, the how doesn't matter to anyone else," She assured her steely as she saw Professor Jigger bobbing towards the door.

Defeated or retreating, Mafalda turned to Scorpius instead, ignoring Rose's remark. "We'll be supporting Ravenclaw, Scorpius. Fancy sitting with us at the game? Zaneeta and Mrs. Selwyn will be there."

"No, thanks," Scorpius said dismissively. "I intend to be sitting with my friends."

"And WE'RE BACK!" Lucy bellowed into the microphone over the roar of the crowd. "Hello Hogwarts, I'm Lucy Weasley, 5th Year Ravenclaw and Prefect, but there'll be no favoritism from me as I have here with me today, Molly Weasley of Hufflepuff!"

"Hello," Molly offered before Lucy continued to prattle.

"And it's Ravenclaw verus Hufflepuff today! Hufflepuff won their last match 150-0, in a little over six minutes and down one player, Seeker Amelia Macmillan, who was covered by Second Year Beater, Rose Weasley. Ravenclaw played last fall against Gryffindor, losing 270-60 and then turned around to beat Slytherin 200-80. However, Ravenclaw won last year's Cup so everyone is excited today." Lucy paused while Rose swung her bat, pelting another one at Dreycott, forcing the Chaser to swerve and miss the Quaffle, Nadia snatching it as she flew by.

"GOAL! Hufflepuff scores thanks to Chaser Bisnette!" Lucy announced as the crowd roared. Dominique zoomed by then, large blue eyes glancing nervously about at Rose's bat. Domie was the reason for the particularly nasty bruise on the nape of Melly's neck, still evident from where Rose's Bludger had hit her in practice, especially today where her red hair was pulled up into a ponytail. Dominique Weasley for the Ravenclaw Seeker and Captain, their galleon in the goblin's hand. Widely rumored to be the most scouted player at Hogwarts, Dominique had assumed Captaincy last year and turned Ravenclaw around, winning the Quidditch Cup even, all due to her spectacular Seeking skills. Like Hufflepuff's gamble to catch the Snitch before Slytherin could score, Ravenclaw depended on Dominique's safety and Snitch-catching. But Hufflepuff didn't just believe in good luck; the team prided themselves on their hard work.

"…And another goal for Hufflepuff by Whisp," Lucy announced, bored.

Molly yawned widely enough so it gave off a little sighing echo in the microphone clutched in Lucy's hand. "His eighth one, I think."

Within an hour of play, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff had launched into a furious battle to see who would score more. Gawain had worked the Chasers well, teaching them to score as much as they could in hopes Ravenclaw would catch the Snitch out of mercy. Dominique was too well-known for her quick catches to end the game in victory that he and Rose had worked on Amelia playing keep-away with the Bludgers and Snitch.

Their practices had gone well, but Ravenclaw was matching them goal for goal as Lauren Clearwater scored to tie them up again. They needed the Snitch. Ignoring the Chasers squabbling over the Quaffle below and Melly flying on the other side of the field, Rose turned to see Dominique still floating closely, before dodging quickly past a Bludger. Rose rocketed after it like a Seeker on a Snitch until a glimmer of gold caught her eye below. Dominique hadn't just dodged the Bludger—she had started in hot pursuit of the Snitch! Amelia had spotted it too and was racing across the field. But there was no way Melly would get there quick enough. Changing her angle, the Bludger altered its course to come whistling back towards Rose, but the quick turn had given her enough time to get her Beater's bat in hand and swinging. The Bludger took a nasty crack at it and ricocheted off, zooming away towards Dominique.

The high-pitched noise of it breaking the sound barrier through the air was enough to warn Dominique however, and she abandoned the Snitch to loop out of the way as the Bludger hit the Snitch out of reach, sending it spinning into Melly's grasp.

Coach Woods blew his whistle, the crowd in yellow cheering as the Hufflepuffs landed, Molly yelling happily into the microphone. "Hufflepuff WINS! 310-160, Hufflepuff plays in the final!

Rose descended, touching down on the grass as the team engulfed each other, yelling happily as Gawain did a strange sort of happy war dance that Melly and Rose joined in. "We did it!" Nadia shouted in Doug's ear before she twisted around to face him for a second before she smushed her lips against his.

When she pulled away, Doug looked a bit shell-shocked. "Eh, nice game, Nadia." He said dumbly as she giggled.

An hour after the game, Rose wandered with her broom back on to the field. With all the practicing lately and the rising pressure to win again, she had almost forgotten what it felt like to fly without a bat in hand. The wind bit at her cheeks, forcing her to slow just slightly as she turned upward, but a reckless notion took hold and she started spinning as she flew straight up.

Applause echoed in her eardrums and with a start, she came to a halt three hundred feet up, scanning for the source of the sound.

It was a woman, with short black hair pulled into a bun with a fancy ribbon and a pug nose that looked familiar. Rose cautiously flew down to her, managing to hover so they were eye-level. _Is she a parent that came to the game?_ Rose wondered, trying to think of who she was.

"Very nice," The woman said finally, her eyes raking over Rose and her broomstick. "A natural flyer. You played for Hufflepuff?"

Rose nodded. _Is she a scout?_ Rose couldn't imagine this smartly-dressed woman in stilettos working for a Quidditch team, but scouting didn't involve flying either.

"How do you like playing for Hufflepuff, Miss Weasley?" The woman asked, eyes intent.

"It's wonderful!" Rose declared eagerly. "I love Quidditch, I've been playing it since before I could walk, being a Weasley—"

"I noticed many of your cousins play on their house teams," the woman continued. "But you are the only Hufflepuff."

_Maybe she's trying to get some dirt on Dominique_, Rose realized, squaring the black-haired woman up. "We all love Quidditch," she said neutrally. "Even Molly, my other cousin in Hufflepuff. She simply chooses not to play it."

"And how does this make you feel?" The woman persisted, pulling the ribbon out and letting it fall into a horribly familiar bob, digging in her purse. "To know that Quidditch divides your family, that your family must chose between supporting their House or their children. Is this why Dolly doesn't play Quidditch?"

"Her name is Molly," Rose said hotly, "And she—" She broke off as she realized the ribbon was actually a fancy, fuchsia feathered quill. Revulsion began to build as a flashing thought came through her head, something Molly had said once. Gritting her teeth against what _she_ thought, she parroted Molly and Uncle Percy's words. "And I hope that quill isn't going to be used to record anything I've said as my mother's laws clearly state that I need to be fully-informed to give consent for the _Daily Prophet_ to print anything I say and besides, I believe my aunt is in charge of the sports section?"

The woman's face turned angrily pink and harsh. "You're exactly like that stupid, buck-toothed freak, even though you're a badgering little bint."

Rose flew forward, gripping the handle tightly and was relieved to see her yank her stilettos out of the ground to step back. "I _am _a badger," she said slowly and deliberately. "But who are you, besides a nosy gossip?"

She sneered openly, stuffing her quill back into her hair. "I am Pansy Selwyn, and a pureblood, which is more than you can say."

"You're Amaryllis's mother, Mafalda's friend," Rose noted. "That's who told you all those things for that article. I saw you, that day in Diagon Alley."

Pansy laughed mirthlessly. "Mafalda Prewett! All that girl needed was someone who understood her, which was more than what your family did. But I knew what it was like to be the best, to be special and different and have it torn away from you," she said darkly, glaring at Rose maliciously. "I've seen a lot more than just Diagon Alley, little girl. I could tell you things that would make your hair curl if you hadn't gotten your mother's brainy little head of bushy hair."

"About my family?" Rose cut her off. "Yeah, and you know what? I could tell you things about us that would make you weep if you weren't a cold-hearted, Slytherin sneak." Pansy Selwyn's eyebrows were raised, giving off carelessness on top of her barely masked astonishment.

"Rose Weasley?" She heard some trepidation in her voice as Angela Longbottom strode up to them briskly, hands in her pockets. "It's almost dinner-time and Hufflepuff's having a party afterwards, courtesy of the house elves. You'd better get inside."

"Just a minute, Angela." Rose interrupted, eyes flickering behind the blonde seventh year to the sneering woman. "I want to make sure we are finished here."

Whatever warmth Angela had in her round face was quickly lost as she turned sharply on Pansy Selwyn, stepping in front of Rose's _Cloudburst_. "Mrs. Selwyn, reporter for the Daily Prophet's society section, I presume?" Angela asked in clipped tones. "I believe I must ask to leave immediately or I will have the Headmistress place a restraining order against you for coercing unwilling students."

"Don't Hufflepuffs believe in second chances?" She said slyly.

Angela smiled grimly. "We do, except that you are on your third."

Pansy opened her mouth, a snarling look on her face which dropped as Angela whipped out her wand. A dead silence ensued, Mrs. Selwyn eyeing the wand. "Very well," Pansy Selwyn said smoothly, all fury gone. "I will take my leave." Her eyes left the wand and caught on to Rose's face behind the Head Girl. "We are not so different, you and I," Pansy said slow and venomously. "A daughter of two highly respected people, attached to young Malfoys, rather like princesses in our Houses, the two of us."

"But I," Rose remarked, letting a grin through. "am proud of what I've accomplished for myself, which is more than what you can say."

Yanking her stilettos out of the ground one more time, Pansy Selwyn stormed away.

* * *

**It's official! I finished writing out the story so maybe before March, I'll have the rest of the story uploaded which is 3 more chapters.**

**Questions for my readers! What do you want to know about the next book (I think I'll start in June as right now, I have a show and I'd like to write myself so far ahead before I upload.)? Should I give you a bit to read? A couple of clues? A summary? Chapter titles? For those of you who are new to my series, the next book will be from Scorpius's point of view and it is currently called **_**Malicious Intentions**_**.**

**Reviews are lovely! And if you like Into the Woods, I wrote 3 new oneshots! And Astrea Severin Orion Black is a birthday girl today!**


	18. Guts and Glory

**The Beater and Badger**

Chapter 18: Guts and Glory

* * *

Rose overslept the next morning after the party, waking up groggy in her bed, stiff and sore from yesterday's game. Still, she smiled, remembering how she and Angela faced down Pansy Selwyn after the game. But her train of thought was broken off by Mary Jo Cattermole entering with an owl following her. Mary Jo looked nervously and ducked as the owl swooped over her head and landed on Rose's bed. "The letter, it's addressed to you." She stammered.

"Whose owl is this?" Rose asked, curiosity perked.

Mary Jo just mumbled, already backing out the door. Rose shrugged and took the letter and package from the strange owl. He clicked his beak and flexed his black-tipped wings before setting back out.

Sure enough, the letter was addressed to _Rose Weasley_. She slit the letter open and began to read.

_Dear Rose,_

_It's me, Mathilde Prewett! I'd thought you might want your book back for classes. Sorry I took so long to read it. _

Rose paused in surprise, pulling the packaging paper off. Sure enough, her copy of _A History of Magic_ was inside. She had forgotten completely about lending Mathilde her book, preferring to follow along as Albus quietly coached her through it every class.

_I really liked it—it's like reading one of my Narnia books! What does Hogwarts look like? The only pictures of it was after it was all destroyed. What House do you think I'll be in?_

_Sincerely,_

_Mathilde_

_P.S. I almost forgot—I did my first magic! I made Mafalda lose her voice for days!_

Rose laughed, leaning over her book clutched to her stomach as she imagined Mafalda under _Silencio_. The idea was absurd, trying to imagine Mafalda Prewett unable to gossip, but a fantastic one all the same.

Finally, her laughter subsided and she read the rest of the letter again. Mathilde wanted to know what Hogwarts was like…and who could blame her? It was all Rose ever wanted to hear when she was nine and she had loads of cousins to tell her about it. Somehow, she didn't picture Mafalda being willing to blab about school to her little sister.

_Dear Mathilde,_

_Thanks for sending my book back! I'm glad you enjoyed it—I can't stay awake in class, the professor is so boring that he bored himself to death! (Professor Binns is actually a ghost)…_

The first truly glorious day of spring coincided with the long awaited since November, Gryffindor versus Slytherin match. Tensions were running high since a Gryffindor 7th year jinxed two 6th years silly a week ago but the odds were even high considering the current team standings. "But the odds are in Gryffindor's favor as Slytherin has already lost to both Ravenclaw and even Hufflepuff who had one player down in the first match of the season," Lucy reported. "If Slytherin manages to pull off a victory, then the team with the highest number of points scored this season will play against Hufflepuff in the Cup!"

Green and scarlet players swooped over the field as Rose clutched her dad's old pair of omniculors to her face. Dad claimed to have gotten them in the 1994 Quidditch World Cup of Bulgaria versus Ireland and he even showed her _the_ _**Victor Krum**_'s _autograph_. For some reason though, when she asked Mum about the match and how Victor Krum caught the Snitch, Dad's ears turned red and offered her the omniculors in exchange for never mentioning the name in Mum's presence again.

As always, the Chaser cousins battled the Slytherins for the Quaffle, scoring fifty points in the first twenty minutes. James, Fred and Louis were demons on the Quidditch field, Rose noted. Louis had the best broom among them, a Jupiter 170, and was a fast flyer but James was the best flyer on the team, as good as Rose. After all, he had first gotten her to do magic for the first time.

"_Look at me!" James yelled gleefully. Rose couldn't take her eyes off of him. James was flying on a Nimbus 2010, looping through apple tree branches and snatching the biggest, reddest looking one from the top of the tree that she could never climb up high enough to get. _

"_Oi, Jamie!" Teddy Lupin shouted. "Fly a little lower, so Grandma won't see you up so high!" Then, his life assured as long as the kids were safe, Teddy flopped back down, examining his Chocolate Frog Cards. Albus was amused by the Albus Dumbledore and Severus Snape cards Teddy had presented him to start his own collection, but Rose could care less as Teddy searched for a special one for her. It wasn't fair that five year olds had to ride on training brooms! She wanted to FLY!_

_Then, barely a moment after she had thought that, she was. Rose was hovering weightlessly in the air and she was drifting even higher ever so slowly._

_But she still wasn't as high up as James. Rose tried to kick like in the swimming pool and to her delight it propelled her up higher. She kicked and doggy-paddled until she grabbed an apple off the tree._

_Then Teddy shouted, "__**ROSE!**__"_

_Rose turned to wave down at Teddy and Albus when suddenly, she was falling back down, down, down…_

James hadn't seen her levitating until he came out of the tree and knocked into her. Both of them broke bones and Rose had to sit in bed for a week but she had not only done her first magic, but she got to fly for the first time. After James was ungrounded and Rose was ok'ed to get out of bed, Daddy got her a broom and Aunt Ginny started teaching both of them how to fly.

"GRYFFINDOR WINS! Zabini caught the Snitch but Gryffindor goes on to play Hufflepuff in the Cup!" Lucy hollered into the microphone over the roar of Gryffindor.

Gryffindor celebrated it's victory for the whole last week of classes. Even in the classes Hufflepuff shared with Gryffindor, the second years were particularly rowdy. But Rose didn't have the energy to fight back the rousing cheers from Gryffindor. For the final game in two weeks, Gawain settled on a new plan of victory.

"Gryffindor," He announced the day after the Gryffindor/Slytherin match. "Has some of the best damned flyers in the school. It's the Weasleys that are the problem. Rose here," he shot her an annoyed glance, "is the proof of that. The whole family has been flying Firebolts since they were in diapers and there's no denying that they won't try to outfly us in the match. They didn't even bother trying to fill any of the other positions. Malena and Mackenzie are both weak-armed and got picked because they could fly on a broom single-handed long enough to knock the Bludger out of the way. And Emmett doesn't have a seeker's build. He's tall and got a thick frame, he tries to act as a human Bludger between the other seeker and Snitch long enough for the Weasleys to rack up the points with the Quaffle. So," Gawain continued, ignoring the downcast faces of his team. "We are going to take advantage of their one weakness: _they depend on their brooms_."

Five minutes later, the team was doing assorted exercises on the ground, their brooms laid abandoned on the grass besides them.

_Huff. _"Forty-six," Rose gasped, her arms aching beneath her as she tried to bend her elbows again. Somewhere behind her, there was another painful thud as Gawain had presumably hit another Quaffle from his beater's bat and it had hit Casper instead.

_Puff. Gasp, gasp, aaaahhh!_ Sounds of running feet came by again as Melissa, Doug and Nadia completed another lap around the field, throwing another Quaffle between them. The Snitch buzzed by her nose as Amelia flew by then. Rose ducked her head quickly to avoid a collision. Only Melly was allowed to practice flying after the Snitch on her broom. Gawain arranged for his Chasers to play keepaway on the ground and running laps around the pitch while he taught Casper to play goalie in muggle football. And Rose got stuck doing push-ups.

"Keep it up!" Gawain called back cheerfully, hardly breaking a sweat as he jogged in pace and pummeled another Quaffle towards Casper. "I told you, these muggles are amazing! Implementing different techniques and work-outs for training…Weasley! That's a long enough break now."

Cursing silently, Rose did another push-up. _Forty-seven._

Rose fumbled with her quill and books all morning because she ached so much. Her broom had still not be ridden since before the game, doing push-ups and lifting weights every night this week. Friday happened to be the last day of classes before the students had the week off for Easter so the Great Hall was even more obnoxiously loud because of the students geared up for the break.

Someone poked her in the back, right where one of her joints was aching. Grimacing, Rose turned towards Scorpius; his great grey owl, Pluto, perched on his shoulder despite it being lunch and not post-time.

"You're staying here over Easter, right?" Scorpius asked. Rose nodded, rubbing her shoulderblade. "Well, would you mind meeting Mrs. Tonks and Teddy Lupin with me?"

Rose blinked in surprise. "You're going to meet them? When?"

"Well, I wrote back to them and they arranged to meet with me tomorrow morning and I thought, since and you and Al know them that—"

She cut him off. "We'll both be there, Scorp. Count on it."

"You know who else you know, Rosie?" A slyly familiar voice asked. Rose turned, rolling her eyes at Louis and James. Fred was still sitting back at Gryffindor table, but he was sitting at the table with the rest of the team, two empty seats beside him. It wouldn't take a genius to figure out what they wanted. "The Hufflepuff Quidditch team." Louis continued, with a grin.

"We've seen you all out there," James latched on. "What in the name of Merlin's arse are you doing though? You haven't flown in a week probably! You're just fooling around out there and you seriously expect to beat us?"

Louis lowered his voice so no nosy Hufflepuffs or Scorpius would overhear. "Hufflepuff hasn't come close to winning in twenty-six years and it's been probably over thirty. But we'll gladly grant you second place if you chose to forfeit and save your guts."

"Not that we _want_ you to surrender," James added in quickly. "There's really no glory in having it handed to you like this, but you are our little cousin and we like our cousins with their guts still in them."

Rose's fingers curled around her wand inside her pocket, but she didn't pull it out. "As long as I've got guts, I'm going for the glory too," She replied scathingly. "Now. Be good little dogs and go back to your master why don't you?"

Scorpius regarded her with amusement as the Gryffindors retreated. "I don't know why you're so nervous," he remarked. "I don't think anything will stop you from playing a fair game next Saturday."

"Will you stop pacing, Scorpius?" Rose raged as she threw down her quill in disgust.

"I'm sorry," Scorpius said shortly, sitting down next to her. Grudgingly, Rose resumed pursuing her third year classes. Why did she have to pick _now_? Couldn't it wait until summer? Or after she knew what she wanted to do with her life? Which probably wouldn't happen until she sixteen or so, knowing herself so well.

"Well, I'm done," Albus said leisurely as he waved his filled out form. No inkblots or scribbles or x's anywhere.

"How did you decide so easily?" she moaned desperately. Al shrugged.

"Well, I asked Mum and Dad, but they told me to ask Aunt Hermione and she sent me—"

"You asked my mother?" Rose asked, mock-offended. "She helped you figure out your life, but _her own daughter_—"

"…and she asked me to give this to you." Albus finished, extracting a long letter from his scroll. "You're welcome Rosie."

Huffing, she ignored him as she unrolled it and began reading.

_Dear Rose,_

_Albus mentioned that he was having trouble deciding on picking classes and I knew you'd be too much like me to ask for help, so I sent him this to pass along. (Don't be huffing at me! You wouldn't be reading this if you didn't need it!)_

Rose gulped and continued on. Her Mum was so scary sometimes. She finished scanning through the note quickly, pausing only once she noticed the postscript under_ Love, Mum. _

_P.S. All my children who wish to play Quidditch __**will**__ take Foreign Cultures._

Rolling her eyes and smiling in spite of herself, Rose checked off Foreign Cultures. After a second thought, she also marked off Care of Magical Creatures, a new class called Wandless Wizardry and a bit more reluctantly, Ancient Runes. So, with muggle studies required for all third and fourth years, she had five new classes scheduled because there was definitely no way she would consider Divination, Alchemy or Arithmancy. No way whatsoever.

"What did Mum suggest you take, Al?" Rose asked, still bent over her form.

"Foreign Cultures, Arithmancy, Ancient Runes, Wandless Wizardry, Alchemy, Care of Magical Creatures and definitely not Divination." Albus said promptly. Rose surpressed a snort.

"And how many of those will you actually take?" Rose said.

"Foreign Cultures, Arithmancy, Ancient Runes, Wandless Wizardry, Alchemy, Care of Magical Creatures and not Divination," Albus said. Now Rose actually snorted.

"Of course you would…what about you Scorpius?" Rose asked the twitching, pale faced boy who jerked to attention.

"Huh? Oh, uh, I've got Arithmancy, Ancient Runes, Wandless Wizardry and Alchemy down," He said mindlessly.

"So, that's all of us taking Ancient Runes and Wandless Wizardry," Albus said thoughtfully. "Elora told me she wanted to take it too."

Albus's support was lost as footsteps drew close, voices drifting towards them and Scorpius stumbled upright, Rose caught his sleeve. "Hey, relax," she hissed. "They won't bite you." And then unable to resist, she added, "Well, hard, anyways."

Scorpius paled again and rolling his eyes, Albus scowled and aimed a half-hearted smack at her, which she ducked easily.

The door opened and there was a tall and stately looking witch companioned by a taller man with a subdued shade of violet, shaggy hair today, topaz eyes grinning at them.

"Wotcher, Alby and Rosie," Teddy Lupin said. Granna Anna, with the same sort of dignity that Rose suddenly recognized similar to Scorpius's grandmother, did not resort to childish nicknames, but she did smile.

"Good morning," she said mildly. "We are very sorry that we are late, but Edward chose to sleep in this morning instead of being ready to go at exactly nine o'clock like he told me he would." She reprimanded. Teddy held up his hands defenselessly, as if to say _Mea Culpa, Mea Culpa_, and Granna Anna relented.

"So," she said slowly. "You must be Scorpius Malfoy." Scorpius, pale and stiff, gave a curt nod as she studied him with a gaze. "Albus and Rose told me that you are in Ravenclaw, unlike me," she remarked off-handily.

"What house were you in?" Rose asked curiously.

"Slytherin, Rosie." Granna Anna answered, still focused on Scorpius. "Pulled a Sirius on your family, I see." She said, sounding amused. "And you made friends with little Albus and Rose on your first day, they told me."

Hogwarts's clock tower began to echo long, tolling bells. After the twelfth one finally faded, Granna Anna sidled her purse closer to her elbow, looking ready to go.

"Well, it's not a Hogsmeade weekend so the Three Broomsticks ought to be fairly empty for us. Why don't we then take our family reunion down to the village and have lunch?" She suggested.

Scorpius nodded, looking delighted. "Yes, ma'am." He replied.

Granna Anna huffed, looking a bit disgruntled despite her dignity. "Ma'am? Didn't Cissy teach you that you only refer to your elders as 'ma'am' when they're not related to you. I'd be your Aunt Andromeda but since everyone else does, I might as well be your Granna Anna too. Albus, Rose, you'll be coming too. You're part of the family and I'm sure that you'll have your sides of the stories to tell us."

"Yeah, Scorpius, I want to hear some of these," Teddy cut in. "Hmm, Scorpius. What do you think, little cousin? Scorp, Scorpion, Sting?" He suggested.

Albus nodded with a delighted grin but Rose glumly shook her head. "Got Quidditch practice," She said. "Sorry."

"_**I've**_ got Quidditch practice, Rose." Granna Anna sighed.

"Right, it was nice seeing you both, Granna Anna, Teddy. Bye Al and Scorpius!" She called out as she hurried down to the pitch.

The rest of the team was already gathered there, starting their routines when Rose ran up. "Gawain, wait!" She hollered, seeing him putting Gasper in as the goalie of their practice, muggle football game. Gawain looked over to her and jogged over, leaving Casper practice juggling and heading the Quaffle.

"What?" He asked impatiently.

"Gryffindor sent me a message to me yesterday." Rose said. "They offered us the choice of forfeiting. They reminded me that Hufflepuff hasn't won since the 60's or 70's and that it takes guts to get that kind of glory."

Gawain's forehead creased. "Weas—"

"I sent them back to Gryffindor," Rose cut him off. "I told them that once we were done with them, they'll be puking their guts up. So you'd better know what you're doing with this muggle cross-training because they've been spying on us and they know."

Gawain grinned widely. "I do know. Now drop and give me thirty for being late."

* * *

**We are coming close to the end! The next chapter is the long-awaited QUIDDITCH CUP!**

**Just a thought-This is part 2 of a 7 story series. I don't have a title to fit the series and since I switch character perspectives, I can't just say Albus Potter and the ... Unfortunately, I can't tell you anything that might help you come up with a title. I suppose I am on my own with it. But you can help me by leaving a review! I love reviews. Reviews are greater than the sum total of favorite story+favorite author+story alert+author alert+add to archive.**

**Speaking of archive, I have a Next Gen Archive that features over 700 stories (more than any other Next Gen collection!). Check it out!**


	19. With a Little Bit of Luck

**The Beater and Badger**

Chapter 19: With a Little Bit of Luck

* * *

"All right team," Gawain said as twilight was finally falling. "The game's tomorrow. Gryffindor thinks we're a joke. But this is _no_ _laughing matter_."

Some kind of fire had taken hold of him now. Gawain Branstone wasn't the same Captain who had slumped and sped his broom all over the field trying to save everyone. Victory inflamed him, straightened his spine and to boot it all, he wasn't nearly as skinny. He had gained muscle and Rose knew she had heard Melissa and Amelia giggling about him in the locker room.

"Gryffindor's been spying on us for awhile now, to see what kind of tactics we'd use, I suspect. But by implementing our Muggle training, we've increased both our stamina and ability and left Gryffindor clueless for tomorrow! They will resort to their old tried and true method of using their numbers of Weasleys to overwhelm us with the Quaffle. Chasers, use your stamina to outscore them. Casper, remember your football training—use whatever you can to defend those hoops! Rose, we are going to focus on McLaggen. He's practically a human Bludger so he'll keep us busy. Melly, I'm counting on you." Gawain finished desperately. "I can't predict whose favor the score will be in if we leave it up to the Quaffle and me and Weasley will be busy with McLaggen. You need to _catch_ _that_ _Snitch_!"

Rose woke at the time she would for classes but the dorm was already empty. _Game day_, she thought, pulling on her socks.

The Den was packed as everyone seemed to be pulling together their support for Hufflepuff, donning their house scarves and banners. Duncan painted half his face yellow and the other half black, clashing horrendously with his red hair on both sides. There were a few cheers when she entered and completed the team standing by the entrance, the entire House standing proudly behind them as a guard of honor. As Gawain opened the wine rack passage, Rose glanced back and offered a wave to Cedric Diggory's portrait.

The Great Hall was also riled up. The Gryffindor table was bedecked with red and gold. Ravenclaw was also mostly in the shades of red while Slytherin surprisingly wore all black. She wasn't sure whether or not they were mourning their own defeat in the last match or somberly supporting Hufflepuff so they wouldn't have to turn to Gryffindor, but she appreciated it all the same when Albus let off a few yellow sparks from his wand as she entered.

It was hard to eat for once. Rose squirmed in her seat, clutching her bat and Cloudburst under the table when someone tapped her. Scorpius was standing there, non-affiliated with any House support, with Elora in Gryffindor gold and Albus in black beside him.

"We just wanted to wish you good luck in the match, Rose," Scorpius said awkwardly. "I'm supporting Hufflepuff, I just haven't found anything yellow yet—"

Impromptu, Rose tugged off her Hufflepuff scarf and wrapped it around Scorpius's neck before he could say anything else. "It's windy out today," she blurted out. "And if I take it with me, it will just fly away…so you could hold on to it and cheer Hufflepuff on, you know."

Scorpius touched the ends of the scarf, staring at it intently before he blinked, shook his head and dropped his hands to his pockets. "Yeah, I will. And you'll probably want to head down to the pitch early, so Peeves doesn't try to detain you with a prank or something. Good luck then," he said before hurrying off.

Albus and Elora came next. "I can't support Hufflepuff, Rose, I'm a Gryffindor," Elora dithered. Her hair ribbon was scarlet today, a shocking color in her hair. "But I'll cheer you on instead of our Beaters, all right? And I got you a ribbon to help hold you hair back. Let me put it on."

As Elora expertly pulled Rose's hair up with a badger-black ribbon, Albus cleared his throat. "I convinced my mates to wear all black for you. It is your house color and we won't look like a daffodil and _no_ self-respecting Slytherin could pull off that look."

Rose laughed. "Thanks, Al," she smiled. "And Elora. Are you two heading down to the stands this early?"

"No," Lysander interjected as he came down from a few seats over. "We're going to visit Hagrid first. I hear Miss Cyrene has scale rot and Luna wants to know when she should come up and treat it."

"Lysander, your mum's over six months pregnant and she wants to heal a giant Sea Serpent of scale rot?" Rose asked.

"Don't worry," he said genially. "Luna's quite gentle with animals. She's taken her dosage, the full moon being tonight. The pup will behave like a lamb."

"Lysander," Albus reprimanded as they walked away. "Just because it's a werewolf doesn't mean you should call it a pup. It's still a baby."

Rose tried to eat more after they all left, but it was hopeless for her stomach. She finally gave up and started heading down there herself. Gawain had warned them last week about wandering alone, in fear of an ambush and at the sight of a red-dressed Sixth Year, Rose hurried towards the Hospital Wing, for the secret passage down to the pitch.

Shrill and gleeful yells echoed as Peeves came swooping down the hall. He was playing catch with a Snitch as Rose greeted him. "Peeves!"

Peeves started, flying face first into a chandelier as the Snitch dropped into Rose's hand that was outstretched below. It wasn't a Snitch, she realized then. It was a small, corked bottle with a few drops of honey at the bottom. No, not honey, Rose thought. Honey doesn't leap llike that. "What's this, Peeves?" Rose asked curiously, examining it. Peeves gasped and tried to extricate himself from the chandelier above.

"Miss Weasley, your prankness, I borrowed it off a student, I did!" Peeves protested. "All in good fun."

Rose shook her head, pocketing the bottle. "Peeves, you can't borrow things if you don't return them," she lectured exasperated.

"Humph! Peevesy thinks you being no fun," He complained before bringing his voice up an octave and nasally. "_Miss Weasley, you're a spoiler, Of Peevesy's such good fun! Hufflepuff made you a toiler, to make my fun all done!_"

He cackled and released himself from the chandelier, which shuttered and unhinged, crashing to the floor as Rose ran off.

She finally slowed once she reached outdoors, one hand in her pocket as she pulled Peeves's bottle out. She knew that from the bottle it was a potion inside, but nothing that she recognized. and if Peeves had it, it meant he stole it from someone who was looking for it.

_Elora!_ The name sprung to mind. Elora had perfected Dreamless Draughts all last year and she had spent this year studying potions in detention every Monday night too. If anyone could tell her what potion this was and who's it might be, Elora would and Rose might even be able to return it before she was needed at the pitch.

Rose hurried down past the pitch, around the castle to Hagrid's hut. Mopsy was asleep on the front step. With any luck, she might be able to intercept them before the match and find out who the note belonged to. With a quick thump on the door, Hagrid opened it, grinning widely down at her.

"Eh, Rosie Weasley!" He rumbled, stroking his grey beard. "Cahme in, yer friends are 'ere too, but shouldn't yeh be getting ready fer teh game? We were just on our way down ourselves," he amended, letting her in past him to where Albus, Lysander and Elora were sitting.

"I am, but first," Rose started, pulling the bottle back out of her pocket again. "Elora, can you identify this? Peeves stole it from a student."

She passed the potion over and Elora carefully removed the cork, and sniffed it, blinking very fast.

"Who did Peeves get this from?" Elora demanded, holding the bottle up. Rose shrugged.

"He didn't say, but what is it?" she prodded. Albus and Lysander sat down their mugs, immersed in the drama playing out.

Elora's face tightened. "Felix Felicis—it makes you lucky." Albus sucked in a breath.

Rose grabbed it back then, staring at the bottle in astonishment. "A potion that makes you lucky? Why doesn't everyone have this on hand then?"

Elora looked affronted. "Don't be stupid, Rose, " she stressed.

"But why bloody not?" Rose argued.

"Because," Albus said shortly. "Today's the Quidditch match."

"What sort of ingredients makes luck?" Lysander asked.

Rose froze then, as Elora explained the properties of it to Lysander. The two she had overheard fixing the Quidditch games. A lucky potion. Maybe even Melly's arm breaking.

"That's why," she suddenly answered herself aloud. The other three broke off and looked at her. "Oh, Merlin! Elora, do you know who made this potion?"

She shook her head. "No, there's no name on it and I don't know this handwriting."

Albus seemed to understand. "Rose...what if this belongs to a Hufflepuff?"

Rose sat back down very quickly and stared at him aghast. Hufflepuff was suddenly in the Quidditch Finals after years of loss. Had this all been _luck_?

Albus reached for the bottle. "It's already been drunk. We can throw it in the fire and see what happens, pretend this never was found."

"No." Rose said vehemently. "I may be the Beater and I want Hufflepuff to win, but I am a Hufflepuff. A badger would never cheat like this."

"I know how you could track them down," Lysander offered placidly. He stood up then and walked over to Hagrid, who had been busy poking at the tea kettle this whole time. "Hagrid!" He half-shouted before Hagrid jerked.

"He's gone a bit deaf," Albus whispered as Lysander continued to speak very loud and clearly. "But he doesn't seem to notice it any, so we just have to really speak up."

"Sure, yeh can borrow her for a bit, she'd be glad fer a walk," Hagrid said, pleased, before he whistled.

"Borrow what?" Rose asked Lysander as Mopsy's energetic barking came from outside.

"A boarhound with the best nose around," Lysander said proudly.

Rose snapped a leash on to Mopsy's collar, as the bells began to toll nine o'clock. She had an hour before the game, but if she hurried, there'd be time. Leaning down, Rose ordered, "Mopsy, smell this, girl." Mopsy sniffed the note delicately, before turning her large head to lick at Rose's fingers. "Not me, girl. Who's was this before me?" Rose asked.

With another snuff, Mopsy barked and leapt forward. Rose grabbed tight hold of the leash as dog and girl bounded towards the castle.

Mopsy was loping along easily, her fur springing back like elastic as Rose was full-out sprinting to keep up, still clutching the crumpled paper in one hand. Then Mopsy abruptly came to a stop near the Quidditch Pitch, where students were already gathering, sending Rose pitching towards the ground on her stomach. They laughed, not recognizing her as the Hufflepuff Beater. The dog waited patiently for Rose to get to her feet and then Mopsy started sniffing, following her nose over the ground before barking and bounding forward again, this time scratching and howling at the locker room entrance.

Rose yanked, pulling the door open as Mopsy slipped inside, sniffing her way to the red-painted door before whimpering.

A stab of disgust and relief shot through her then. As thankful as she was that Hufflepuff wasn't cheating their way through, the idea that her cousins might be in on a secret plan to win was abominable too.

"Rose!" Amelia said surprised as Rose sprinted past her. "Rose, our locker room is right here!" She heard Melly shout after her as Rose dashed on by. A minute later, Rose was banging on the Gryffindor locker room when Roxanne, already dressed, opened it.

"Rose?" She asked in surprise before she and Mopsy darted by her cousin. "Hey, you can't come in here! And where did you get that dog?" Roxanne protested.

That dog gave another great sniff and then her head jerked up, and with a cheerful bark, her tail wagging against Rose's knee, crept over to James, excitedly licking at his fingers.

Rose stormed up to James, who was embarrassingly only half-dressed, as he knelt down to greet Mopsy. But as it was at least his lower-half that was still clothed, Rose didn't exactly care right then. "Hello Mopsy," James said, sounding friendly before glancing up. "Rose! Hey, you can't be in here, this is for Gryffindors only! Unless Hufflepuff sent you to surrender?"

"You'll forfeit for breaking the rules before I surrender, James Sirius Potter!" Rose burst out angrily, brandishing the ingredient list of Felix Felicis. Mopsy barked in affirmation as she sniffed at the paper again and turned away.

James's brown eyes widened and his freckles stood out in his suddenly pale face. "Don't know what you're talking about, Rosie Posie," He said, attempting to crack a grin.

"Don't lie!" Rose shouted angrily. "Someone's been fixing the games, I know it, someone who was planning on drinking lucky potion to help them win until Mopsy tracked you down!"

"Fixing the games…?" James started incredulously as Fred and Louis joined in, tugging Mopsy back.

"Rosie, you shouldn't be in here first of all, and secondly, can you keep the dog out of McLaggen's bag? Nobody wants dog drool on their uniform and Emmett said he'll be back soon," Fred said, handing the leash back to her.

"And what's this about James being a liar?" Louis inquired.

"I'm not!' James said indignantly as Rose spoke over him.

"Mopsy tracked him down as owning a list of ingredients for Felix Felicis that Peeves stole off a student today," Rose accused curtly.

Fred snorted. "Rosie Posie, if this a plot to scare the Gryffindor team before game-time, it's pathetic."

"Why else would Mopsy have tracked down James?" she countered as the three of then exchanged wary glances.

"No," she said throatily now, shaking her head. "You _did_ do it—"

"No," Louis said quietly. "Mopsy came to James because we've been bribing her all year so we could sneak into the Forbidden Forest without getting caught."

"You've been _**what**_?" Rose said loudly. The three of them shrugged. "How?" she demanded, feeling slighted.

James dug into his bag, holding out a blank sheet of parchment while Fred pulled out his wand and said, "I solemnly swear I'm up to no good." Ink flowed from his wand, marking the Map as the castle appeared as well as its banner.

_Messrs. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs_

_Purveyors of Aids to Magical Mischief Makers_

_are proud to present_

_**The Marauder's Map**_

_Re-presented by Messrs. Changeling, Ghoul, Goblin and Gremlin. _

Rose's head jerked up then. "You mean—"

The three of them sighed. "We solemnly swear we are up to no good," Fred said straight-faced. Rose simply stared back at them.

"No, it was you three who kidnapped me!" She exclaimed loudly. "You were in the hall when I heard—" She broke off, anger building in the pit of her stomach. "You did fix the games then, didn't you?" She insisted. "I heard two people talking about fixing the Quidditch games and then you ambushed me!"

"Rose!" Louis shouted over her then. "We _**did not**_ fix any games!" He said vehemently as James and Fred nodded. "We saved all our skins!"

"Rescued the damsel in distress—"

"And our own arses."

"And if you look here," Louis said smoothly over James's crude example, his fingers tracing a path. "We'd exit out of Gryffindor Tower on the 7th floor, use the Map to get us down by the Infirmary, follow this secret passage that you apparently have discovered down to the pitch. We'd sneak by Hagrid's hut, feed Mopsy a treat and be in the Forest with none the wiser. Although we did have a few close calls, being so close to the Quidditch Pitch, but luckily Hagrid's half-deaf now and James was able to convince you one time that a Quaffle escaped."

Now do you believe we're innocent?" James asked.

Rose eyed them suspiciously. "Innocent, Merlin's arse. Then what have you three been up—Oof!" She ended with a grunt as Mopsy tripped her and buried her head in an opened bag on the floor.

"Come, Mopsy." James instructed as Mopsy reluctantly lifted her head and trotted back to them, a notebook hanging out of her mouth.

"Bad dog, you can't chew that! It's got McLaggen's Quidditch plays on it." Louis said, tugging the notebook away and flipping through. "Looks like dog drool didn't hurt—"

He broke off, silently studying one page before grabbing Rose's note out of her hand and holding it up. "That _bastard_!" He erupted.

That was what needed to be said for the entire Gryffindor team to understand him. Even Malena, the exchange student, understood his tone. James had a strange look on his face, like he was going to be sick. Fred looked slightly dumb-founded as he examined it, but he was at least able to take charge of the situation. "Right, boys—and ladies—I think we need to bring the teachers into this. Using liquid luck is seriously illegal and we don't want to get caught with it while we're hunting down McLaggen." He issued. "I think splitting up might be best—Louis with Roxanne and me, Rose, take Mopsy with James. Malena and McKenzie, stall the Hufflepuffs, please, with your lovely Brazilian and English _cuerpos._" Fred added, with a wink, stumbling over the Spanish. "You two can go after McLaggen, and Rose, see if you can have Peeves give us a hand and we'll bring in the cavalry."

"Very well," Malena said in surprisingly clear English. "But in Brazil, we speak Portuguese, not _Espansol_."

* * *

**And a cliffhanger! This chapter will a sort of kick in the face, I realize. But I got 10 reviews since I last posted a chapter! Keep it up! Reading your reviews was the bright moments in my otherwise utterly crappy week. **

**Two chapters left! Keep reading and reviewing and I'll have them up soon. **


	20. The Sorting Hat's Secret

**The Beater and Badger**

Chapter 20: The Sorting Hat's Secret

* * *

James bent after the Map, his fingers running over it. "There!" he half-shouted. "He's leaving the Hospital Wing and taking the long route. He doesn't know about the passageway down, I guess." He thrust the Map at Fred who nodded and ran after the others, leaving the two cousins alone.

"We'll never catch him on foot," Rose realized grimly.

"Who said anything about being on foot?" James asked, already mounting his broom. They blasted off, one right after the other, shooting out of the locker room and out into the sunlight. The two of them were streaking along at top speed, Mopsy flat out sprinting after them. The stands were already filled up and they all turned, a ripple effect to see their Hufflepuff Beater and Gryffindor Chaser being followed by a dog.

"And there goes James Potter and Rose Weasley, flying the wrong way with a dog for no reason," She heard Lucy report.

"ROSE! WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU _DOING_?" She heard Molly wail, magnified into the microphone.

They turned together, veering past Hagrid's hut and back around the castle, Mopsy still loping to meet their shadows. It wasn't until they came in sight of the doors did Rose start to slow in panic. _The doors! We'll crash!_

At least James still had his head despite the tight expression of anger stretched tight across his face. Wand out, he uttered a simple charm that made Rose grit her teeth at. "_Alohomora!"_ The doors unlocked and Rose followed up with a blast of the heating charm Scorpius's taught her. Her anger fueled it to high speed and pushed them open just as they flew in to the Entrance Hall.

They flew in side by side, Mopsy tracking mud in behind them. Rose grimaced at the thought of poor Byme being stuck cleaning up but then she kicked out her left leg and the Cloudburst beneath her spun right.

With a clatter she managed to land, tuck and rolling safely as Peeves blew a raspberry at her above.

"Peeves," she gasped. "I'm really sorry. You're totally right, I've become really boring lately. But I'm going to pull a prank right now and I'd like you to play it with me."

Peeves pretended not to hear her as he continued trying to unscrew the chandelier, but she knew he was listening. He wasn't unscrewing it the right way.

"I want to catch Emmett McLaggen in a trap," she continued rushing on. "Me and James are going to do it, but we need your help, Peeves, please, I'll…let you dump pumpkin juice on me, just—"

Peeves cackled and swooped down. "Oh, Miss Weasley! I knew you wouldn't be like all those boring little Puffballs! Just count on Peevesy."

Three minutes later, Mopsy let out a bark. Rose and James shot forward as Emmett McLaggen turned the corner, carrying a large potions flask. Her heart clenched at the sight of him carrying the dark liquid.

He froze for a moment, to see his Chaser and the Hufflepuff Beater dive-bombing him. Then he ducked, stumbling his back into the wall as they flew by and started to turn. Rose barely turned enough to look over her shoulder when she heard the crashing of a chandelier falling and the yell of pain as Peeves trapped McLaggen underneath.

Rose rolled off her broom again as James jumped off and ran towards the chandelier, staring down bitterly at his Captain.

"Why?" James uttered in frustration. McLaggen groaned. Peeves cackled overhead.

"Potter! What the hell…" Then he spotted Rose standing off behind James. "And the Weasley girl, what the hell is going on here?" He demanded, trying to inch out. James out his foot down on top of the chandelier, twirling McLaggen's wand between his fingers. "That," James said. "Is exactly what I'd like to know. Rose, what was that expression you used when you burst in?"

"You'll forfeit for breaking the rules before I surrender?" she answered. Something nudged her foot and she bent down to retrieve the rolling potion bottle, a large gash of broken glass in its side. Dark, rolling smoke oozed out of it as the potion soaked the stone floor.

Rose let her feet shuffle along the floor, dropping her gaze down to her shoes. Her laces were untied, she noticed absently.

The Headmistress cleared her throat. "Well," she started, speaking for the first time since she asked Rose to explain. "Isonia? Can you verify?"

Professor Jigger nodded glumly. "Yes, I always do a challenge on the first day with my Sixth Years. He did get it and this list is correct. Your daughter's become quite the potions prodigy, Neville, being able to identify N.E.W.T level potions." Neville nodded grimly. His role as Head of Gryffindor came before any fatherly pride.

"These are very serious accusations, Miss Weasley—and you have very strong evidence to support yourself. There's not much I can say." Professor Sprout sighed.

Someone cackled. "I can say something," it said.

Everyone in the room turned towards the Sorting Hat who cocked the tip of it's hat like it was tilting it's head. The brim curved upwards, almost gleefully.

Rose stood up, almost too abruptly. She caught the watering can full of quills before it fell off the Headmistress's desk. "Say it then." She told the Hat.

Professor Sprout was a short, little woman but Neville reached up easily and took the Hat sliding it over her hair like he had for her Sorting so long ago.

_If you hadn't argued with me, you'd probably have been a Gryffindor. _

Rose sucked in a breath. There it was, that long-suspected, suffering truth. For months after her Sorting, she had wondered late at night if she was Gryffindor material after all and here was the proof it was her fault that she probably disappointed her dad.

_Are __you__ disappointed?_

Instead of the darkness that came from inhabiting the inside of a hat, Rose suddenly saw herself, holding a Quidditch trophy, her uniform of Gryffindor colors, her self framed by the gilt edges of the Mirror of Erised. The Mirror tempted her with that question too, by showing her as a Gryffindor and a Ravenclaw with perfect N.E.W.T. scores but then—

_**No. **_Rose decided, remembering her reflection with the Hufflepuff crest. _**I'm a Hufflepuff.**_

The Hat cackled again. _I know! For all your daring and smart-mouthing, Miss Weasley, you're tenacious, loyal, hard-working and honest. You haven't disappointed anyone but an entire crowd of Quidditch fans. But I'm sure you're proud of yourself anyways. Not many people, even Hufflepuffs could have given up everything they've worked for._

Rose nodded, slipping the Hat back off. Neville took it back, placing it up on the high shelf behind the desk as Professor Jones hurried over.

"Rose, I'll take you back downstairs. We want to confirm your story with the Gryffindor team and then we'll confront Mr. McLaggen but if you could please wait in case we need you again…" She trailed off as they reached the foot of the stairs. Professor Jones took the lead from there to the teachers' quarters where the entire Gryffindor team was gathered.

A strong, red shield divided the room, separating McLaggen from his team members who brightened at the sight of her.

"I need Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley, Mr. Weasley, Miss Weasley, Miss Martinez and Miss Murray to follow me," Professor Jones ticked off, ushering Rose inside. "I trust you, Rose, to behave yourself in here."

And then they were left alone. Almost immediately, Rose dropped her wand on the floor, causing McLaggen's head to jerk up as she pressed up against the shield charm.

"Why?" she asked. The fury had drained seeing him trapped beneath the chandelier earlier but the urge remained.

He glared at her. "That potion I had wasn't Felix Felicis, you stupid Puff."

"It seemed too perfect," she cut him off. "I've been thinking it all over. I've been suspecting something funny since the first of December. I overheard two people discussing fixing the games down by the Hospital Wing. And come to think of it, that first game was really weird. Melly's arm breaking and Madam Pomfrey wouldn't get any shipments till next week, I play Seeker on a team that's one player short but I happen to find us a strategy and we win. Professor Jigger said you won a vial of it on the first day of classes! And then the fact a bottle with a bit of Felix Felicis happened to be found?"

McLaggen's face darkened, flushing a blotchy red. "You have—_**no**_ _idea_," he emphasized with a grimace.

"Try me!" She shot back, the fury returning, rising with the heat in her face, fingers curling around a wand she didn't hold—"

"If I had really taken it, don't you think I wouldd have been lucky enough to not get caught?" He spat at her, the spit dripping off the Shield Charm.

"It had your scent on it!" Rose argued vainly.

"I used that months ago, on a day I wasn't even playing! It was your first Quidditch match, not mine!"

"So that potion did break Melly's arm!" Rose cried out in fury.

"No." He said, looking straight at her. "It saved your team. And the only potion I had today was Wolfsbane!" He bellowed. "And you broke it. It's four o'clock in the afternoon already. If I don't get my dose tonight, do you think a shield charm could hold me back?"

Rose didn't retreat but her conscious self curled up in the fearful part of her mind again. "You're a _werewolf_!" She cried out in absolute shock. Emmett shuddered, but offered a brief nod. "But your dad, he—"

"I inherited it from him. Fenrir Greyback bit him, the night that monster killed my grandfather."

There was nothing Rose could say but Emmett was saying it all anyway. "Yes, we talked that night about fixing the games! My dad arranged it with Wood and Sprout when I realized the full moon was the same night as that first game and he had just told me why the game had been re-scheduled. And yeah, I had the Felix Felicis! I didn't want the transformation interfering with the game so I took a sip the night before. And the next morning, I found out about your Seeker and that we weren't playing and I felt guilty! It was my fault, if I had known earlier, I wouldn't have drunk it and her arm would have been ok. So when I came over to wish you all luck—"

"Luck!" Rose suddenly shouted back at him. "You mean—"

Emmett nodded. "No wishes required. I was ready to pour a bit of Felix Felicis into the cups of anyone who shook my hand."

Rose swallowed hard, feeling the golden pumpkin juice, spiked with luck down her throat again. "But I was the only one. _I_ drank the lucky potion."

Emmett swallowed too, looking as shaky as she felt. "Yeah," he said softly. "You did and if you told anyone that, you'd be in worse trouble than me. Knowingly and willingly drinking it..."

"Rose! Hey Rose," Louis shouted as they all returned. "We told them everything and I think we did it. They mentioned you might get an award, I heard—"

"Miss Weasley, please step away. I need to escort Mr. McLaggen up to the Headmistress's office," Professor Jones said, wand out and ready to remove the charm holding him back.

Stepping to the side, the shield fell and McLaggen walked by like a condemned man. The Gryffindor team was silent as their Captain passed by but they broke out into chatter once the door shut.

"Rose? Hey, Rose?" Louis repeated. She ignored him, turning to stare out the window. An early moon was rising, weakly lit against the blue sky. _The moon!_

Quick, Rose turned and sprinted, letting the door slam. She raced through the halls, skidding to a stop finally by the Hospital Wing. "Madam Pomfrey!" She yelled, her heart still pounding. The old woman hurried out of the storeroom, her cap askew. "I need Wolfsbane potion," She gasped. "Emmett didn't drink it!"

Madam Pomfrey turned and hurried back into the storeroom before reappearing with the dark, smoky drink she had seen before. "Merlin bless you, child," the nurse whispered. Rose dashed through the halls, clutching the flask close to her chest before she sprinted up the stairs and threw open the door.

Emmett was sitting in the chair she had been in, his head swiveling towards her.

"Here," she whispered, feeling very out of breath. "Wolfsbane."

"It could have waited a few more hours," he murmurmed. He reached out and took it, draining it empty before wiping off his mouth. Rose slumped against the wall, taking in the three professors, the portraits, the Hat and finally, Cormac McLaggen.

"Miss Weasley," Professor Sprout said then. "Mr. McLaggen has admitted to having used Felix Felicis to alter the outcome of the Quidditch games and for that, we must sentence him to—"

"Please!" Rose burst out again. Everyone was looking at her now. For some reason, Emmett smiled.

"Don't say anything, Rose. _**I**_ used the potion to alter the outcome of the game. It's my punishment." He repeated.

"Emmett McLaggen is hereby banned from playing Quidditch and he will be suspended for the rest of the year. Your N.E.W.T.s will not be taken. " The Headmistress said gravely.

* * *

**I intended to get this up half a week ago, but a little thing called LIFE got in the way. I'd apologize, but since it's my life that was going under the forever-altering choices I had to make and I'm the author, let's make allowances, okay? :)**

**So, can I just say that was a dramatic chapter? Difficult to write, but much needed. Reviews would be much appreciated after that chapter and these last few days.**

**One chapter to go...up soon.**


	21. Rose's Turn

**Badgering Others**

Chapter 21: Rose's Turn

* * *

Emmett's shoulders sagged, dejected, as McLaggen clapped his son's back. The teachers began to murmur and Rose felt sick to her stomach.

"In this case," Neville said finally, looking forlorn, "I forfeit the Quidditch Cup on Gryffindor's behalf in favor of Hufflepuff, due to the despicable cheating on our end."

"No!" She blurted out, refusing to look at Emmett's face. "No Gryffindors drank any of the lucky potion to change the affects of the game. I'm the only one who drank it!" The room quieted, but she kept on talking, trying to make someone, Emmett or a teacher, drop that expression like she had punched them in the gut. "Emmett followed your orders, Professor Jigger. He drank it on a regular day but it hurt Hufflepuff's chances for the Cup so he tried to even the odds…"

Neville looked dumbfounded, Jigger appeared guilty, Professor Jones and Emmett terrified, but Sprout and McLaggen both, for some reason, pleased.

She turned the book on her desk back a page, reading it carefully with a finger marking her spot. McLaggen looked uneasy now, fidgeting on the spot, his fingers digging into his son's shoulders.

"Well," Sprout said then. "That changes things a bit. You see, there is no ruling yet on using Felix Felicis on a team you are playing _against_. Miss Weasley, I presume, had absolutely no knowledge of having taken the potion?"

"None," Emmett said hoarsely. "It mixed right in with the pumpkin juice."

"Then your punishment must be changed to fit the circumstances," said Sprout briskly. "You will be removed from your post as Captain and from your N.E.W.T. level Potions class. And fifty points from Gryffindor for the misuse of potions. Pouring potions into someone's drink is a serious offense, Emmett. If Rose had shown any seriously negative side effects, you could be facing the Wizengamot right now. It's very lucky that she is fine."

McLaggen looked thrilled, stepping forward to shake Sprout and Neville's hands. He had turned towards Neville though when his son cleared his throat.

"Thank you, Headmistress," Emmett said clearly. "But I think I shall resign from Quidditch all-together."

His father's hand slipped out of Neville's grasp.

"What do you mean, son? You can still play, you're on the team. There's a Quidditch Cup that needs to be won—you always wanted to fly with the Cannons, Emmett," McLaggen said quickly, striding to his son's side.

Emmett shook his head. "No, Dad. I _can't _play because I just quit the team. I was going to tell you after the match today anyways. I realized that having lycanthropy really screws with you when the full moon's right before a match and besides…I'm not ashamed to be one either," he confessed, glancing to his dad and then to Neville. "I was discussing with Professor Longbottom about my life goals when second semester started. He thinks I could get into the Ministry working for werewolf rights—he said he'd put in a good word for me with one of his friends and she'd see what positions I could apply for—"

As Emmett kept talking, Rose glanced towards Neville, who was smiling now. She mouthed two words at him. "_My mum?_"

Although Mum now worked in the Department of Magical Law, her successor was chosen by her and they still worked closely together. Neville winked back a confirmation.

McLaggen's hands were shaking but he nodded, his Adam's apple bobbing. "Yes," he said broadly, a grin like his son's relaxing on his scarred face. "Yes, for the love of Merlin, why wouldn't I be proud of my son being in the Ministry? To tell the truth, son, I've never understood why you'd liked the Cannons so much."

"You are both excused," Sprout offered the two of them when Professor Jones jumped back in.

"Rose, you'll need to come back with Professor Longbottom and I, as there are still some questions left," she said more cheerfully. Neville and she escorted Rose towards the exit as the McLaggens stood to leave too.

"Rose," Emmett called out. "Thank you."

She turned back to him too. "I'll tell Mum that you ought to work for werewolf rights," she told him. His father nodded.

"Yes, thank you, Rose Weasley," McLaggen said promptly. "And just so you know, the wizarding world is a much better place than it used to be. It wasn't so kind to us werewolves then…and Malfoys weren't that kind either. They were certainly wrong, but perhaps _I_ was, too," he acknowledged. The two of them were eye to eye for a moment and then it was lost to him. "Do tell your mother I said hello? Perhaps we ought to have dinner together sometime, our two families," he suggested as her professors led her down the stairs.

"So," Neville said, a bit apprehensive as he glanced around. Judging by his pudgier frame and uncertainty, Rose was prepared to bet that he had never been in the locker rooms before. "I suppose we are here to vote if we should continue on with the Quidditch Cup or not. Gryffindor would be missing their Seeker, of course, but otherwise, I see no objections as to why we couldn't continue."

"If Gryffindor rather not play short a player, we'd simply cancel the match. It would not be a forfeit," Professor Jones added hastily.

Louis, Roxanne, Malena and Mackenzie whooped. Hufflepuff was quieter but Rose could feel them shaking with excitement.

Rose clutched her broom as her team voted, player by player down the bench. She wouldn't vote when they asked her, not yes or no, she decided. It wouldn't seem fair otherwise since she drank Felix Felicis, even if unwittingly.

"Rose?"

She swallowed hard. "I won't vote," she said thickly.

She prepared arguments in her head, explanations, but Hestia Jones simply nodded and passed her on over to the Gryffindor bench.

"James?" she prodded.

His face was stark ivory still, making brown freckles stand out like moles. "No!" He said angrily. "We didn't get this far because we were good, he cheated, he didn't believe in us or Hufflepuff!"

Gryffindors' faces fell and six "No"s followed James's and the Hufflepuffs nodding grimly.

"Seven to six with one vote withdrawn," Neville said. "I'll announce the match is canceled then. I suppose everyone will just go to dinner from here."

He stepped outside and a few minutes later, Rose heard his magnified voice echoing, followed by the sounds of disappointment.

"A good season to all," Professor Jones said encouragingly as the two teams slowing started to remove their uniforms. "Miss Weasley—Rose," she amended when both her and Roxanne turned. "Might I speak to you outside for a moment?"

Rose followed her out, still dragging the _Cloudburst_.

"I cannot begin to tell you how proud I am," she started without preamble. "And I'm not referring to your honesty today, although I was proud of that too, I mean. I'm so pleased at the way you took charge, that you worked to make your team a success."

"That was the—" Rose began but she was cut off.

"Luck had nothing to do with your other matches," Professor Jones said firmly. "I'm sure my sister would quite agree."

"Your sister?"

"Gwenog Jones, she used to captain the Harpies," she said cheerfully. "She played for Hufflepuff too, back in the day, and the two of us were on the team. Our 1978 win for the Quidditch Cup was the last time Hufflepuff took it."

Rose kind of drifted through the week of classes following the would-be Quidditch Cup. As April drew to an end, the teachers did away with the new lesson plans and started reviewing and note-taking which was rather nice, not having to struggle for concentration. That's what her entire house just did right now. Not dwell on the dream that they could have lived, that Saturday night spent partying, the Cup flashing in the Den like a disco light.

And then May 2nd came. It was a warm enough day for early May, but instead of brightening into blue, the sky stayed grey.

All classes were canceled but every student showed up for breakfast in their Hogwarts uniforms. Overnight, the banners had been hung throughout the Great Hall. After all, for the memorial service today, Hogwarts had to look its best. Rose had been in the Hospital Wing last year and missed the ceremony but she had certainly heard enough about it. And it was no secret how Victoire and Fred got their names or where Teddy's parents went.

Rose fell into step, placed among the Hufflepuf second years as the houses marched behind the teachers down past the lake where thousands of golden chairs were waiting. Hundreds were already filled by black-robed mourners who whispered and some even cried as the students filed past to the front and slipped into their seats.

"To the valiant fighters, family, friends, teachers, neighbors and most importantly, students of Hogwarts' future, we are gathered here today united as Hogwarts students, regardless of our house affiliation or sides." A blonde man stood up front, whom she recognized as the Minister.

Beside her, Duncan sucked in a breath. "Ooh, that's Justin Finch-Fletchely, the Minister! He was in Dad's year, he was a Hufflepuff too—" He cut himself off when Edith elbowed him.

"Today, we gather at Hogwarts to remember those who we have lost but we also invite one survivor each year to share with us their victories. Would Oliver Wood please stand forward?"

Murmurs followed their Quidditch coach up to the front of the crowd. He looked shockingly out-of-place without his whistle, Puddlemere United sweater, and pin.

"Thank you, Minister," he started. "When I heard there was going to be a final stand at Hogwarts, I didn't think too much. I just grabbed my wand and flew into the fray…It was pure madness, just spell after spell. When it was over, I carried so many bodies into the Great Hall. I carried a sixteen year old kid's body, a kid was all he was but still braver than his age claimed. So when the second round came, I started fighting, I just wanted to avenge him, Colin Creevey. When I woke up, the war was over, the Battle was won and I no longer had my left arm. Hit by a dark curse, lucky to be alive, you are right-handed so you can still use your wand…never to play Quidditch again." He swallowed, working his jaw up and down furiously. "I though my life was over. I'd have to quit Quidditch. And that was all I knew. But I knew wrong." Rose's head jerked back up. "I didn't watch friends die, my school half exploded just to sit in a Hospital bed and pity myself for not having an arm. It took the death of another friend to realize that," he added quietly, "Katherine Elizabeth Bell. I spent the summer helping rebuild Hogwarts and adjusting to this fake arm the Healers gave me. And since then, I married another survivor, Alicia Spinnet Wood and we've had two kids. Colin Creevey didn't get a full chance at life but I'm using mine to make sure Hogwarts' kids do. I teach Quidditch and flying here now."

He took a deep breath, seemingly unsure how to end his speech. But he didn't have to as the crowd applauded, ringing, palm-stinging applause, and he raised a small gold pendant that Rose had seen enough before to recognize: a Galleon with the date 05-02-98 forever engraved.

"And now, the recitation," The Minister said. "When a name is called, I ask the representative party to please come collect your candle to light and place on their grave. Bathsheda Babbling."

So many people walked up the aisles now, taking their candles and lighting them with a spark from the Green Flame Torch. Despite, rain or snow, the Green Flame Torch stayed flickering on top of its monument before an enormous graveyard.

Rose saw Teddy and Victoire taking the candles for his parents together, Granna Anna followed, letting tears drip uncensored. Even Teddy was subdued, his hair dark brown and his eyes not twinkling for a change.

Then, "Frederick Gideon Weasley."

The whole Weasley family rose to their feet, sidling out of the rows and joining together as Uncle George lit the wick and led the way. There, among the graves, was one marked.

_**FRED WEASLEY**_

_**Born April 1st 1978-Died May 2nd 1998. **_

**_Lived Laughing._ **

They were quiet as the candle was set before the grave, the grown-ups lost in their memories as Rose simply felt lost in this graveyard full of candles.

The month of May passed in a hurry. Without Quidditch practices keeping her up, Rose was going to bed earlier than ever although her homework was still tedious and vast. The final exams were coming up after all, and despite Albus's constant practicing, Elora's lip-biting and Scorpius's notes all being rewritten, Rose felt rather comfortable with her abilities.

The results came out on Monday that third week of June. Sure enough, Albus was top in the year again although Rose was the highest in Charms and there was half a point in difference between hers and the highest grade for Defense—Scorpius's. And so, the exam points were given out and the excitement that coursed through every Hufflepuff's veins before the Quidditch Cup returned, turning usually mild-tempered students hot-blooded victors for the week—The topazes overflowed in their hourglass compared to the bright rubies, sapphires and emeralds. Of course, nothing was official until the Leaving Feast tonight - which was why Rose wasn't eager to be climbing through the Forbidden Forest while she could be waiting impatiently with the rest of her house.

"But where are we going?" she called out impatiently. The sun was rather hot and the back of her neck sticky with sweat but James seemed rather impervious to it all.

"Almost there!" he said, disappearing into the undergrowth again.

She followed, plunging through until a loud, earsplitting wail startled her. _I knew it wasn't a good idea, even in broad daylight!_ she thought rebelliously. _We'll get caught now and we'll lose points and Hufflepuff will hate me—_

"Rose? Come on, we're here," James said, poking his head back through. With a sigh, she allowed him to take her arm and pull her into a clearing.

It gave off another earsplitting wail which sounded more appropriately like a honk, waiting for them as patiently as a dog.

"Fred and Louis weren't too keen on letting anyone else in, but I figured you could keep a secret better than Roxanne ever would. Isn't she a beauty? According to Dad, it's the Ford Anglia that Granddad used to have. He and your dad lost her in the Forest and she turned wild until she got stuck in an old spider den. We heard her honking and pushed her out of there and been restoring her ever since. Teddy helped us find car parts. When we first found the car, it was so scratched and beaten up you couldn't tell it was turquoise…Well? Would you keep a secret?" James asked nervously.

"This is why you've been sneaking into the Forest? An old Muggle car?" Rose asked, starting to laugh.

"It can fly!" James protested. "A flying car, Rosie. Think about that…if you can keep it a secret, I'll teach you how to drive someday too."

"You can't drive!" she protested, thinking of those hours she spent helping Dad memorize road signs.

"I'm old enough to start," James said grinning. "Fred's getting his license next winter. So, you in?"

"May I have your attention, please?" Professor Sprout fairly shouted over the hubbub. "The points are all in. A round of applause, please, to our gallant three houses: Gryffindor, Ravenclaw and Slytherin!" The applause broke out in quick, anxious bursts and slowly died as Hufflepuff stood together as a House, breath held. She smiled. "And congratulations to Hufflepuff for winning the House Cup."

The noise was deafening, the din outrageous. From over the heads of the cheering Hufflepuffs, Rose could see her cousins yelling and jumping up and down like maniacs too. They were happy for her and Molly too, she realized as Molly started yelling, standing on top of the bench.

Lysander sidled along next to her, the only Hufflepuff she could see who wasn't cheering. "WHAT'S ALL THIS NOISE ABOUT?" he shouted at her.

"HUFFLEPUFF WON—!" She started to yell back, barely a foot away, before he leaned in and kissed her.

It was warm and soft, she vaguely registered before she realized Lysander Scamander was kissing her on the lips.

When he pulled away, the cheers were starting to die down and the Hufflepuffs were finally sitting again. Rose took a seat and Lysander sat next to her.

"That certainly did the trick!" he said approvingly.

"Trick?" she asked.

"Kissing scares off nargles, you know," he assured her. "Like on New Year's, when everyone starts yelling. They were infected by nargles. The quickest way to get rid of them is to kiss, you know. I learned about it in the _Quibbler_."

"Of course," she said, slightly put-off. "Did the _Quibbler_ teach you anything else?"

Lysander was off and scrambling for words, bouncing in his seat. "Did you know that Scandinavian trolls turn to stone in the sunlight? Did you know that Muggle disco dancing originated as a moon calf mating ritual? Did you know that Madam Dubvessa is a vampire? Did you know that kumquats—"

"Madam Dubvessa is what?" Rose repeated in shock.

"A vampire," Lysander repeated. "Did you know that Sirius Black is actually Stubby Boardman and lead singer of the Hobgoblins?"

Rose tuned out Lysander's nattering and glanced at the Head table. Fia Dubvessa still wore her dark glasses but could that tooth be extra long and pointed like a fang?

A banner rippled and Rose Weasley dropped her concerns, simply relishing in the yellow and black banner of a badger prowling.

And then a dark shadow fell across it and there was a flash of orange before Peeves started cackling madly. He floated overhead and the Hufflepuff table joined in when she began to laugh at herself, soaked in sticky, slimy pumpkin juice.

* * *

**And so finally ends Year 2: Badgering Others! Slightly strange, that I finish yet another book as I close a chapter on my own life. But I'd like to thank all of my readers for thier patience with me and thier reviews that kept me going at midnight writing the next chapter. **

**So we leave Rose, a very proud, very sticky, somewhat victorious Hufflepuff. For those of you who had bet on a Hufflepuff Quidditch Cup victory, well, Hufflepuff doesn't give up, let's just say that! **

**I've already had the questions about Year 3 start coming and I'm sure more are to follow. First, I do not have a set date for when I'll start posting. I would like to write myself ten chapters ahead first! Secondly, Year 3 is Scorpius's year and is so approriately titled: _The Querent Quest_. This is where the story really picks up and we start swimming instead of wading into the overall plot. What's ahead for the fabulous four? No Dark Lords, I can promise you that. Jo ended with Harry knowing "All was well" and I don't intend to destroy Harry's life now. But there's still trouble in the wizarding world and only a son of Harry's would be able to find it. **

**_Returning for the third year of Hogwarts, Scorpius Malfoy has managed to prove that he is not his father. For one, he is a Ravenclaw and for another, he happens to be friends with Albus Potter. But perhaps he is more like his ancestors than he wants to be. _**


End file.
